Liberal MP Taylor Martin stayed away from the parliamentary party room amid a barrage of “ugly” text messages he sent to his former girlfriend describing her as a “fucking idiot” and a “stupid bitch” were publicly revealed.
But in a move that has sparked anger within the party, Daily Mail Australia can reveal Mr Martin voted at a key meeting of the NSW state council in the Grand Ballroom of the Fullerton Hotel in Sydney on February 24.
Mr Martin, who earns $172,000 as a member of the NSW Legislative Council, was excused from sitting with his colleagues in Parliament when his abusive texts to then-federal MP Lucy Wicks were were published in the press last July.
In the messages, which he admitted were “ugly”, Mr Martin called Ms Wicks a “fucking idiot”, a “stupid piece of shit”, “sick”, an “absolute c*** of a nobody’ and a ‘fucking ignorant pig slut’.
The messages sparked an external investigation that lasted more than eight months – and since then Mr Martin has sat on the Macquarie Street bench, distanced from the party.
So his attendance at last month’s Liberal state council meeting – where he voted in favor of his friend, power man Alex Hawke, after his expulsion from the party due to an intra-party feud on the preselections – shocked some party members.
Taylor Martin MLC was resigned from the NSW Liberal parliamentary party room in July amid outcry over text messages he sent to former MP Lucy Wicks.
Mr Martin was spotted among hundreds of Liberal branch members attending the state council meeting in the grand ballroom of Sydney’s Fullerton Hotel on February 24. He voted against an unsuccessful motion to expel party proxy Alex Hawke from the party. Hawke has not publicly commented on this effort
One attendee told Daily Mail Australia that Mr Martin’s presence at the council meeting was extraordinary, given he no longer sits in the parliamentary party room.
“This doesn’t pass the pub test,” the attendee said.
“He was excluded from the village hall, it’s just a reality that he shouldn’t have been there.”
Other witnesses said Mr. Martin was smiling and “jovial” as he chatted with his colleagues and factional allies.
Mr Martin attended a crucial Liberal state council meeting on February 24, where his vote helped secure his ally Alex Hawke’s position within the party (pictured in 2017 alongside Mr Hawke and two seats of Lucy Wicks).
The wedding took place just five months after Mr Martin publicly apologized for his past conduct, after his former boss and partner Lucy Wicks filed a formal complaint accusing him of “five years of abuse”.
Membership of the parliamentary party room is separate from being a branch member.
But the Liberal Party never clarified that Mr Martin’s votes would still be counted in closed-door meetings outside Parliament.
Twisting Chronology in Textual Investigation
As the investigation into Mr Martin approaches its ninth month, Daily Mail Australia can reveal questions have been raised about the timing of the complaints process.
A source with knowledge of the investigation said concerns about Mr Martin were first raised by Ms Wicks to a member of the state executive in November 2021 – much earlier than expected.
It appears the matter went unaddressed for several months before she returned to the Liberal Party in February 2022, expressing the same concerns to another elected MP.
It is understood Ms Wicks then took her complaint directly to then-Attorney General Mark Speakman in February 2023, ahead of the state election, where Premier Dominic Perrottet was defeated.
By the time Ms Wicks’ complaint was made public in July 2023 – when she was named in the media without her consent – Mr. Martin was planning his wedding to his new fiancée Brittany.
Eight weeks after his marriage, his new wife, Brittany, had ended the relationship.
At the time his complaint became public in July 2023 when she was named in the media without his consent, Mr Martin was in the process of planning his wedding to his new fiancée Brittany.
As they were leaving, there was a violent altercation outside their home on the Central Coast, during which police were later notified.
“A report was lodged with police at Wyong Police Station in February; however, this is a matter of a personal nature and there are no associated charges,” a NSW Police spokesperson said in a statement.
‘No further information is available.’
Mr Martin publicly apologized for his texts to Ms Wicks shortly after they were made public and pledged to help with the investigation.
He said: “I was young and inexperienced and found myself involved in a situation that was way beyond my control. There were some heated comments made during my separation attempts that I sincerely regret.
“It was an ugly and undignified separation.”
Mr Martin was elected to the Legislative Council in 2019 and serves an eight-year term which expires in 2027.
There was some confusion when he was not given a portfolio when Mr Speakman announced his shadow cabinet in May 2023 after becoming leader of the opposition, after the coalition lost the state election.
There had been rumors that Mr Martin was up for promotion, and questions were raised over whether Mr Speakman knew of Ms Wicks’ allegations when he was forming his shadow cabinet.
Responding to questions about the timeline of the complaints, a Liberal Party spokesperson said: “An independent external investigation is underway into the allegations, and neither the party nor Mark Speakman are able to provide comment so as not to harm the investigation or deny the proceedings. fairness to those involved in this process.
“The investigator conducting the external investigation is aware of everyone’s desire to see the report completed as quickly as possible.”
Daily Mail Australia referred questions to Mr Martin’s representatives.