Maverick MP Mark Latham lives to fight another day

One-time prime ministerial hopeful Mark Latham has been embroiled in several scandals, including taking photos of women MPs without their knowledge, for which he has already apologised.

But on late Tuesday, when the NSW Parliament resumed sitting, he fended off a government-led censure motion after Labor called for an immediate vote.

The motion was first put up in June after he aired information that now-former NSW police commissioner Karen Webb had received bottles of gin as gifts and discussed the medical records of independent MP Alex Greenwich.

It also came after a court ordered Mr Latham to pay $140,000 in damages to Mr Greenwich in September 2024 over a sexually explicit and homophobic social media post that resulted in a defamation case.

He had been referred to the powerful Privileges Committee for an investigation, with a report on matters involving Ms Webb and NSW Police due in October.

However, the coalition opposition, along with the Greens and minor party MPs, voted to adjourn the motion until October, citing the need to see the results of the Privileges Committee investigation.

They defeated the motion 22-to-16, with Penny Sharpe, leader of the government in the upper house, describing the result as disappointing.

"The parliament should be sending a message that his appalling behaviour is unacceptable," she said.

Responding to the motion in the chamber, Mr Latham called her an "ignorant pig" and branded her Labor colleagues "disgusting frauds".

In July, Mr Latham denied sexual abuse allegations levelled against him by a former partner.

The woman made a private application for an apprehended domestic violence order at a local court in Sydney.

Mr Latham resigned from federal parliament in 2005 and was ejected from the Labor Party before being elected to the NSW upper house in 2019 as a One Nation member.

He quit that party in 2023, becoming an independent, with his term expiring in 2031.

Australian Associated Press