Family First's lead Victorian Upper House candidate Jane Foreman has renewed the party's calls for Premier Jacinta Allan to resign, following explosive new revelations published in today's Herald Sun about the transfer of convicted murderer Clinton Rintoull to a women's prison.
Ms Foreman said the latest reporting by journalists Shannon Deery and James Campbell confirms what Family First and other advocates have warned for years — that radical LGBTQA+ gender ideology has been placed ahead of women's safety.
According to the Herald Sun, senior prison staff repeatedly warned that Rintoull, who was allowed to "transition" to Katelyne, posed an "unacceptable risk" to female inmates if transferred to the minimum-security Tarrangower women's prison. One insider told the newspaper: "Everyone saw this coming … the writing was on the wall."
The paper reports that just two months after the April 2022 transfer, Rintoull sexually assaulted a vulnerable female prisoner — a young mother described as "fragile" due to a history of rape and sexual assault. The victim has since received a secret compensation payout from the Allan government, revealed earlier this month by the Herald Sun.
Prison insiders further alleged to the newspaper that high-level discussions focused primarily on Rintoull's gender identity, with insufficient regard for the safety of female inmates. Concerns were also reportedly raised about the "genuineness" of the transition and the level of influence the prisoner was permitted to exercise while in custody.
"The Premier cannot hide behind 'no comment'," Ms Foreman said.
"A biological male convicted of murder was moved into a women's prison despite repeated warnings. A vulnerable woman was sexually assaulted. Taxpayers have paid out secret compensation. This is a catastrophic failure of leadership."
When the assault occurred, Rintoull was serving a 20-year sentence for the murder of 19-year-old Sudanese refugee Liep Gony.
Whistleblowers who spoke to the Herald Sun said:
"She (meaning the biological male Clinton Rintoull) was allowed to come into the staff office to shop online for underwear and makeup. She demanded to be allowed to swim in the male prison pool in a bikini. She threw fits if prison bosses got her the wrong colour scrunchies."
Ms Foreman said this was an example of the silliness and danger of the rainbow political movement's gender ideology, which also holds sway in Victorian schools.
Family First is calling for a full independent inquiry and reiterates its longstanding position: biological males must not be housed in women's prisons or allowed to compete in girls and women's sports or have access to their private spaces.
"Women's and girls' rights and safety must come before ideology. The Premier should resign."
