Shoebridge insists Steele-John should take leave as Greens 'binfire' deepens

Greens leader David Shoebridge has insisted that Senator Jordon Steele-John should take personal leave, after the WA senator denied he had offered or agreed to step back while allegations against him were investigated.

In a statement, a spokesperson said Senator Shoebridge believed it was appropriate that Senator Steele-John not attend parliament.

"Senator Shoebridge remains of the opinion that leave is appropriate under the circumstances and reiterates that this in no way prejudges any of the matters being referred to an inquiry commissioned by the WA Greens," a Greens spokesperson said. 

"It was the understanding of Senator Shoebridge that leave was agreed."

The spokesperson added it was the Greens leader's "firm belief" that a fair, timely and independent process must be allowed to investigate claims made against Senator Steele-John.

Senator Steele-John revealed the allegations being made against him in an extraordinary open letter published on Sunday, in which he claimed accusations of "stealthing" by an allegedly abusive former partner were made after he had broken up with them. He said the person had begun to harass him after the break-up.

"The report made to the police was of sexual assault – that I had, on multiple occasions, removed condoms without her knowledge while she was on top, facing me. This is just not true," he wrote.

The letter also contained unspecified claims of inappropriate behaviour at a Greens event in 2024, and claims about an "interpersonal conflict" Senator Steele-John had with two Greens members in 2016, which was resolved at the time.

Alongside his denial of the allegations against him, Senator Steele-John also rebuked comments by Senator Shoebridge that he had requested and taken personal leave while those complaints were investigated.

"I understand that he was stressed. So was I. But I feel that he used those meetings to repeatedly pressure me to say that I would take leave. I was stunned by this," Senator Steele-John wrote in an extraordinary open letter published on Sunday.

"I asked him, more than once, not to announce that I had requested leave, because I knew it would be read as validating a story where there isn't one."

The Greens senator accused factional rivals of weaponising resolved complaints and "unfounded" rumours in order to damage the future election prospects of himself or allied candidates.

"It is no coincidence that the letter arrived at the Leader's Office the day after we agreed on the timeline for the next preselection," Senator Steele-John wrote. 

"It is my opinion that this is an attempt to influence forthcoming party preselections by deliberately leaking out of context or misleading information to smear potential candidates and myself."

The senator claimed the document's history showed only one person had accessed it since 2019, a former employee to him, who had done so in July of this year.

'Like succession, but more amateur and boring'

The WA senator's open letter has burst open long-simmering hostilities within the western branch of the party.

Senator Steele-John was re-elected for a six-year term in 2025, and does not face pre-selection for years.

But the West Australian Greens branch will soon decide on a replacement on its Senate ticket for Dorinda Cox, who defected to Labor in 2025.

Senator Steele-John's ally and chief-of-staff Sophie Greer and WA Legislative Council member Sophie McNeill are two of the prominent names expected to contest for the spot.

One Greens insider rubbished Senator Steele-John's claim that allegations of his misconduct would be weaponised for a coming pre-selection contest, saying the incident was a "binfire" that had damaged anyone's chances of winning a seat.

The WA Greens branch is widely considered among party members to be a "cowboy" branch known to campaign more aggressively.

A former Greens staffer told the ABC there was still "bad blood" inside parts of the branch since former senators Rachel Siewert and Scott Ludlam moved to secure Senator Steele-John's preselection for the senate more than a decade ago.

They said the branch was small and while there were not formal factions, there were groupings around "old-school" environmentalists and social justice advocates, and personal allegiances could weigh heavily on party decision-making.

"WA Greens factionalism is actually more like a family dynasty. Like Succession, but more amateur and boring," they said.

They also said some members in the branch had "a chip on their shoulder" about being distant from east coast Greens and that insularity led to the branch often seeking to resolve conflicts its own way.