Liberal MP Andrew Laming will receive $79,000 and legal costs following a settlement with ABC journalist Louise Milligan over since-deleted Tweets.
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The public broadcaster confirmed it will pay Milligan's costs in the matter, due to "particular and exceptional circumstances".
The social media posts were "an honest error that had been widely reported by numerous other journalist and politicians on social and mass media," it said in a statement. But it was not aware of legal proceedings against others.
Through his solicitor, Dr Laming said the tweets were an example of "how a false allegation can be quickly and widely disseminated over social media by persons who have no direct/personal knowledge of what actually happened".
The Tweets alleged Dr Laming, who has held the seat of Bowman for the Liberal party since 2004, had admitted to a criminal offence over a photograph he took of a constituent.
Police investigated an allegation he had taken a photograph of a young woman bending over in a skirt. Queensland Police determined there was no evidence of a criminal offence.
Dr Laming apologised in parliament to anyone "genuinely upset" over his communications and behaviour and went on medical leave.
"It is regrettable that so many people including so called investigative journalists, media personalities and political identities use social media to make unwarranted attacks of this nature," he said.
"No one should be subjected to this type of harassment and character assassination without recourse and the defamation laws are important to achieve that end."
He wrote to constituents last week saying the allegations against him had "amounted to nothing".
"All my communication is legitimate and work-related. That is why all my posts remain online and unaltered. It's also why I never stopped doing the job for Redlands I am elected by you to do."
Several Labor MPs and members of the media have since deleted tweets relating to the manner in which the photograph was taken.
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Harley Dennett
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
