Mark Parton, leader of the opposition Liberal Party in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), has confirmed sending a text message during a recent budget estimates hearing complaining about how boring his job was, but denied the message was sent to a sex worker as alleged. The incident has drawn scrutiny amid questions about the appropriateness of such communication during official proceedings.
Reports emerged following a now-deleted social media post from a sex worker who claimed to have received the text, which reportedly read, “And f.k my job is boring. Wanna swap?” Parton declined to disclose the identity of the recipient and stated that a complaint lodged with the Public Service Standards Commissioner had been dismissed without further investigation. He described the complaint as anonymous and noted it had been referred to police.
At a news conference, Parton said he was contacted by the standards commissioner, who declined to pursue the complaint. He emphasized that private messages sent during parliamentary hearings were personal and not necessarily a matter for public scrutiny. “There’s a hell of a lot of private messages that are sent from a hell of a lot of people in the context of sitting days and hearings,” he said.
When asked directly whether he had ever engaged a sex worker, Parton refused to answer, describing such questions as “not in the public interest” and suggested the allegations were part of an attempt to damage his reputation. He said he would not entertain questions that he considered unrelated to the official inquiry or outside the public interest.
On the topic of the budget estimates hearing, Parton acknowledged that many people find the sessions dull, noting his extensive workload. “I’ve worked 80-hour weeks and most people think the hearings are pretty boring,” he said. He asserted that despite the message, he remains committed to holding the government to account in a robust manner and is focused on delivering results in his role.
Parton assumed leadership of the ACT Liberals following the resignation of former leader Leanne Castey in November of the previous year. Castey, who left the party to sit as an independent, cited issues including bullying, intimidation, and threats of violence within the party during her departure.
The incident comes amid ongoing public interest in the conduct and professionalism of elected officials, particularly during official parliamentary processes. As of now, no further investigations have been initiated by the standards commissioner, and Parton’s office has maintained that the matter should remain a private issue.