Liberals ‘stunned’ by Amon child sex allegations despite swirling rumours

The NSW Liberal Party says it had no prior knowledge of child sex crime allegations about former state MP Rory Amon, despite unease about Amon among current and former MPs as rumours of possible indiscretions circulated for months.

Amon, 35, quit parliament on Friday hours after being charged with five counts of having sexual intercourse with a child between the ages of 10 and 14. It is alleged the crimes occurred in 2017.

The party opened nominations on Saturday for a byelection in the seat of Pittwater, likely to be scheduled alongside other byelections on October 19, as stunned Liberals sought information on how long Amon was aware of the police investigation and whether he could or should have told NSW Liberal leader Mark Speakman.

A spokesman for Speakman said he had no advance knowledge of any allegations concerning Amon, and during their interaction on Friday, Speakman did not ask Amon when he became aware of the investigation.

A NSW Liberal Party spokesman said: “The party became aware of these issues from the breaking news reports.”

Amon’s preselection for the northern beaches seat in 2022 was highly controversial. Then-planning minister Rob Stokes wanted a woman to replace him in Pittwater, and many Liberals argued that a woman would be electorally advantageous.

Stokes said on Friday that he had absolutely no knowledge of the allegations and if he had, he would have contacted police.

Unease

Liberal MPs current and former, who all spoke on condition of anonymity on Saturday due to the sensitivity of the matter, said there had been unease and “chatter” about Amon since the brutal preselection, but no allegations of such a serious nature were ever raised.

Some dismissed the chatter as scuttlebutt associated with a tough preselection, but others took it more seriously. One former MP urged at least one current MP to exercise caution with Amon, who had already been elected.

However, other Liberals, including some close to Amon, said they were blindsided by the allegations when they became public on Friday. One said they were “completely stunned”.

Amon did not return calls or messages on Saturday but in a statement on Friday, said: “I deny all charges and will make my case in the courts, not in the media. Accordingly, I will make no further comment on the case.”

The 10 charges also included two counts of indecent assault of a person under 16, two counts of attempted sexual intercourse with a child between the ages of 10 and 14 and committing an act of indecency with a person under 16.

The charges relate to the alleged sexual assault of a 13-year-old boy at an address in Mona Vale over a two-month period in 2017.

Amon became a shadow assistant minister for three portfolios in May 2023, including youth and housing, and took on two additional portfolios – transport and infrastructure – in July of this year.

His exit from the seat of Pittwater means a byelection will be held, likely on October 19, alongside byelections for Hornsby and Epping to fill vacancies created by the departures of Matt Kean and Dominic Perrottet.

On Saturday, most Liberals were resigned to losing the seat, which Amon won over independent Jacqui Scruby by just 300 votes. Stokes had held it by a margin of 20 per cent.

Potential candidates

Names circulating as potential Liberal candidates on the weekend included Claire Longley, the daughter of former Pittwater MP Jim Longley, whom Stokes backed in 2022 but who was ruled out by an administrative issue with her party membership.

Outgoing northern beaches deputy mayor Georgia Ryburn was also touted as a contender, though senior Liberals have been wooing her to run for the federal seat of Mackellar against incumbent teal independent Sophie Scamps.

Ryburn was supposed to run for the northern beaches mayoralty but was a victim of the Liberal Party’s failure to lodge all nominations by the deadline. Upper house member Natasha McLaren-Jones and another northern beaches councillor, Michael Gencher, were also suggested for the seat.

The allegations against Amon and his subsequent resignation have compounded despondency among northern beaches Liberals following the council nomination debacle and the party’s dwindling electoral fortunes on the beaches.

They lost the state seat of Wakehurst last year to independent Michael Regan and the federal seats of Warringah and Mackellar to teal independents.

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