Politics · Australia · 1 hr ago
Payman challenges Albanese over delayed request for extra staff
Independent senator Fatima Payman challenged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese over her long-running request for more staff.
At a Senate estimates hearing in Australia, she asked whether Albanese was waiting for an attack like the one involving Helen Haines before taking her request seriously.
Payman has sought two additional advisers for nearly two years since leaving the Labor Party to sit as an independent.
She says her team is struggling to handle its workload with fewer staff than other offices.
Payman has faced serious threats, including threats of violence, and her office says it has referred more than 100 incidents to police.
Special Minister of State Don Farrell and committee chair Karen Grogan called her remarks outrageous and urged her to withdraw them, but she refused.
Farrell said he would raise the staffing request with Albanese again; the sources do not say whether it has been resolved.
Independent WA senator Fatima Payman challenged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese over her request for two additional adviser-level staff.
At a Senate estimates hearing late Monday, Payman asked whether Albanese was waiting for an attack like the one on Helen Haines before taking her request seriously.
Payman said she had sought the extra staff for nearly two years and that her current team could not keep up with its workload.
Special Minister of State Don Farrell said he would raise the request with Albanese again and called Payman’s suggestion outrageous.
Payman refused to withdraw her remark, while committee chair Karen Grogan also condemned it.
- Who
- Independent WA senator Fatima Payman challenged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Special Minister of State Don Farrell and committee chair Karen Grogan responded.
- What
- Payman questioned whether Albanese was delaying her request for two additional adviser-level staff because she had left the Labor Party.
- When
- Late Monday, October 26, 2026.
- Where
- At a Senate estimates hearing in Australia.
- Why
- Payman said she had sought extra staff for nearly two years and her team could not keep up with its workload.
Fatima Payman
Don Farrell and Karen Grogan
Staffing request
Fatima Payman
Payman said she had waited nearly two years for two additional adviser-level staff and that her team was struggling to keep up.
Don Farrell and Karen Grogan
Farrell said he would raise the matter with Albanese again; the sources do not state their position on the merits of the request.
Albanese’s motivation
Fatima Payman
Payman asked whether Albanese was withholding a decision because she had defected from Labor, and linked the delay to the possibility of an attack.
Don Farrell and Karen Grogan
Farrell called the suggestion outrageous and said Albanese’s motivation was not as Payman described; Grogan said Payman had made an outrageous statement.
Withdrawal
Fatima Payman
Payman refused to withdraw her comment, saying she had not made an accusation.
Don Farrell and Karen Grogan
Farrell asked her to withdraw it, and Grogan said she thought Payman had made an accusation.
A Ballarat man pleaded guilty to threatening Payman by email, according to the SMH.
A Queensland man pleaded guilty to six counts of using a carriage service to menace or harass Payman, according to the SMH.
Payman challenged Albanese over her staffing request at a Senate estimates hearing and refused to withdraw her remark.
- Senator
- Fatima Payman, independent senator for Western Australia
- Requested staff
- Two additional adviser-level staff
- Length of request
- Nearly two years
- Minister questioned
- Don Farrell, Special Minister of State
- Committee chair
- Karen Grogan
5 sources
Fatima Payman stuns by asking PM if he was waiting for ‘Helen Haines-style attack’ against her
Payman asks if PM is ‘waiting for what happened to Helen Haines’ to occur again – video
Fatima Payman sparks fury with 'outrageous' question about whether Albo is waiting for her to suffer a Helen Haines-style attack before giving her extra staff
What people are saying
Has the prime minister refused to make a decision on my request because, unlike all the other defectors, I defected from the Labor Party? Am I being made an example of?
Is the Prime Minister waiting for something like what happened to Helen Haines to occur in my office, or to me, before he takes our request seriously?
I personally think that’s an outrageous suggestion, Senator Payman
We should be better than that, and particularly on a day like today, we should all be better than that, but you're not going to be