Australian Greens: Senator Steele-John skips sittings amid misconduct allegations

Australian Greens senator Jordon Steele-John has confirmed he will not attend parliament next week, escalating a dispute within the party over whether he should step aside while allegations of misconduct are examined. The Western Australian senator has denied all claims against him, and he has apologised for posting a confidential letter detailing the allegations on social media.

A three-page letter dated 13 October, addressed to Greens leader David Shoebridge and first published by Nine newspapers, called for an investigation into allegations that Steele-John behaved inappropriately towards women between 2017 and 2025. The letter stated its authors had been "made aware of multiple allegations of serious misconduct" about his behaviour in the presence of women. It described an allegation of sexual harassment at a 2024 Greens campaign event, which the alleged victim did not report for fear of backlash, and a 2025 allegation of "serious sexual misconduct" raised by a former partner. Steele-John said the latter had been investigated by Western Australian police, which closed the case in May with no charges laid.

Steele-John said he removed the letter from social media after learning the full document was circulating online, adding, "I'm now not sure that was the right call and I've taken it down." In a statement posted late Friday night and since deleted, the 32-year-old said he had considered joining Senate estimates virtually but was told that would be "unacceptable". He pointed to a "growing chorus" calling for him to stay away from parliament and argued a precedent had been set for excluding parliamentarians after "allegations of allegations".

Attendance for the remainder of the year became a matter of public dispute after Shoebridge said Steele-John had requested leave and that he granted it last week, following a letter from seven party members urging an investigation. Steele-John has denied agreeing to take leave. The complaints are now under independent investigation commissioned by the WA Greens and have been referred to the Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission.

The letter also cited a disparaging nickname for the senator, "feels on wheels", which its authors said suggested a reputation for inappropriate behaviour. They stressed that "an allegation does not equate to a fact and/or guilt". In a statement last Sunday, Steele-John accused an "unofficial faction" within the WA branch of leaking the letter to the media in an attempt to remove him from the Senate, describing the effort as playing "nasty political games".