Scott Morrison’s new candidate who campaigns against trans women playing sport suddenly pulls out of community Question and Answer session - despite PM throwing his support behind her
- Katherine Deves withdraws from community Q+A amid a public backlash
- She was set to speak at a local event on the Northern Beaches on Tuesday
- The decision came just hours after Scott Morrison’s impassioned plea of support
Embattled Liberal Party candidate Katherine Deves has pulled the pin on a community Q+A amid public outcry surrounding a series of comments she’s made against the transgender community.
The event at the Manly Community Forum was set to be an opportunity for residents on Sydney‘s Northern Beaches to discuss key local issues ahead of the upcoming federal election.
Independent MP Zali Steggall and Scott Morrison‘s hand-picked choice for the seat of Warringah had confirmed their attendance for Tuesday night’s event, but with pressure mounting Ms Deves advisors warned her to withdraw.
The embarrassing retreat comes just hours after Scott Morrison threw his weight behind the besieged women’s sport activist, vowing to stand up for her.
Manly Community Forum advertised the event on their website saying all major candidates would be on hand to answer tough questions.
Candidate for Warringah Katherine Deves has divided the Liberal party over her controversial comments
‘We will conduct a Federal Election Forum and Q&A with the major candidates for next month’s federal election for the seat of Warringah,’ the website said.
‘That includes sitting MP independent Zali Steggal, Liberal candidate Katherine Deves and Greens candidate Kristyn Glanville.
‘Labor and other candidates have also been invited. Each candidate will be allocated five minutes to introduce themselves, followed by questions from the floor.
‘This will be an important meeting and we hope you can attend.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ms Deves and NSW Liberal Party for comment.
the Prime Minister was adamant he won’t allow his controversial Liberal candidate who campaigned against trans women in sport to be ‘silenced’ by moderate party members and a left-wing Twitter pile-on.
In his strongest comments on the matter yet, Mr Morrison on Tuesday said Ms Deves would be a ‘great member of Parliament’ and doubled down on his support for the under fire aspiring MP.
Some moderate Liberal members have called for Ms Deves to be disendorsed after she apologised for calling transgender children ‘surgically mutilated and sterilised’ in tweets last year.
But Mr Morrison today stood by his candidate, saying: ‘I’m not going to allow her to be pushed aside as the pile on comes in to try and silence her.
‘I will stand up with her, my team is standing up with her, and we will make sure that she won’t be silenced.’
The Prime Minister said Warringah candidate Katherine Deves (pictured with her family) would be a ‘great member of parliament’ and declared: ‘I’m not going to allow her to be silenced’
Ms Deves co-founded the group Save Women’s Sport which aims to stop transgender women competing alongside biological women.
‘She is standing up for women and girls and their access to fair sport in this country,’ Mr Morrison said.
‘I think she will make a great Member of Parliament, she has learned in her advocacy in her private life there are better ways to do things to take things forward as a Member of Parliament.
‘I believe that is how she will approach the task if she is elected as the member for Warringah, and I don’t think she should be silenced,’ he said.
In the first week of the election campaign Ms Deves apologised for the wording of her old tweets about the issue.
In those tweets she described transgender children as ‘surgically mutilated and sterilised’, and likened her stance on the issue as being akin to the French Resistance fighters who resisted German occupation during World War II.
Ms Deves revealed she has been bombarded with death threats by left-wing activists on social media.
Mr Morrison (pictured) has again backed his captain’s pick in his strongest comments so far on the issue
This is the tweet in which Ms Deves made her controversial comments about transgender teenagers. She shared a picture of a trans American teenager who had just had breasts removed and wrote: ‘This photo just hit my feed. It is beyond heartbreaking.’
High profile Liberal moderates Trent Zimmerman and Matt Kean have publicly called on Mr Morrison to dis-endorse her over fears her views will hemorrhage support in inner-city seats.
‘I don’t think having candidates that want to spruik the politics of division is in the interests of the party or in the interests of those people candidates,’ NSW Treasurer Mr Kean said.
But Ms Deves has support on the party’s conservative wing with former Prime Ministers John Howard and Tony Abbott backing her stance.
On Monday, independent Warringah MP Zali Steggall told Sky News the topic of trans athletes competing in female sport was a ‘distraction’ from bigger issues.
‘I feel there’s a lot of lying going on about the actual status quo, we already have a law. The Sex Discrimination Act already deals with the situation, this is just not an issue,’ Ms Steggall said.
‘And saying that parents will be concerned is just repeating a transphobia line.’
Katherine Deves (pictured) is contesting the independent-held seat of Warringah
When she was asked to clarify why concerns about the issue should be deemed ‘transphobic’ she said ‘because we are talking about a minority of the population that is already incredibly vulnerable.’
‘All this policy approach opts to do is seek division.’
Warringah takes in part of Sydney’s northern beaches and north shore. It was Tony Abbott’s seat but was taken by Ms Steggall at the 2019 election.
She is favourite to hold on to the seat.
Katherine Deves broke her silence on Saturday to admit the controversy had taken a toll on her
