Face of the Day

Police Minister Mark Mitchell says ACT leader David Seymour should have contacted the Independent Police Conduct Authority to share his concerns about police treatment of Philip Polkinghorne, who was last year found not guilty of killing his wife Pauline Hanna.

But Mitchell said it’s up to the public to judge whether Seymour sought to “influence or interfere” when he wrote a support letter for Polkinghorne during the police investigation into the death of Hanna.

“Every local MP has got an important role to play in terms of advancing the constituent’s issues or raising or being a conduit or raising issues, but they must be very careful they cross that line into actively trying to interfere with a ongoing police investigation,” he said.

When asked whether Seymour did cross a line, he said “that’s probably something that everyone else can judge”.

“The police responded in the right way. They came back and they referred him back to their lawyer or the IPCA, which was the right avenue to for him to follow as a local MP.”

Stuff