Labor, Nationals butt heads over Chapman Valley Show incident towards Labor MPs, staff over sheep export ban

Labor and the Nationals have become embroiled in a stoush — with legal action threatened — stemming from a confrontation that saw an irate patron verbally abuse Labor MPs at an agricultural show over the live sheep export ban. Labor’s Agricultural Region MLC Sandra Carr and Geraldton MLA Lara Dalton were at the Chapman Valley Show on Saturday, as were the WA Nationals. Ms Carr alleges a patron took the Nationals’ slogan of “tell Labor to flock off”, referring to Federal Labor’s decision to phase out live exports, as an invitation to express his thoughts. In a Facebook post, she described the incident, saying the man “aggressively and loudly slapped a sticker on our table and gave Lara, a young male helper and me a mouthful of abuse”. She said she did not feel safe. Ms Carr said after the event she felt the need to leave as a result of the incident. “I felt a bit rattled; it’s the first time I’ve felt a bit vulnerable in my role,” she said. In the post, Ms Carr took aim at the Nationals and the party’s Geraldton candidate Kirrilee Warr, saying their slogan was an invitation for abuse. “Can I really blame the angry bloke from the bar who, after a few bevvies, felt emboldened to jump the fence and hurl abuse? Didn’t these Nationals signs plastered at every turn encourage that very behaviour?” she said. “The slogan is completely inappropriate for a family friendly event. Kirrilee Warr, Nationals candidate for Geraldton, is a mum. I can only assume she is perfectly OK with kids who were exposed to the signs turning up to school tomorrow and telling their fellow students to ‘flock off’?” Chapman Valley Agricultural Society president Darrell Forth said organisers responded quickly to the incident. However, he downplayed it, saying it had escalated into something bigger than what it was. “He did confront them in a bit of an aggressive manner because of his feelings about (the live export ban),” Mr Forth said. “It’s not something we want to encourage at a family event and we take things like this very seriously.” Mr Forth said he sat down with the man after the incident and that the man was remorseful for his actions. He said although there was an incident, it was like a “storm in a teacup”. Both Ms Carr and Mr Forth say although the man had a couple of drinks, he was not drunk. Nationals WA State director Julie Kirby said the behaviour of the man towards the Labor Party was unacceptable but they were seeking legal advice about Ms Carr’s comments. “The Nationals WA strongly condemn any form of aggressive or inappropriate behaviour and it is especially disappointing that this occurred at a community event,” she said. “Such actions are entirely unacceptable and do not reflect the values of our party or our supporters. “The Nationals WA are currently seeking legal advice regarding defamatory accusations made against our candidate for Geraldton, Kirrilee Warr, by a member of the Labor Party. “We take these matters seriously and will not tolerate baseless accusations against our members or candidates.”