Victorian opposition leader testifies in federal court defamation case brought against him by ousted Liberal MP

A dossier relied on by Victoria’s opposition leader, John Pesutto, to support his bid to expel Moira Deeming from the state Liberal party last year has been described as “no better than a project prepared by an eight-year-old” during his first day of cross-examination in a high-stakes defamation case.

Deeming, now an independent MP after her expulsion from the party, is suing Pesutto, for allegedly falsely portraying her as a Nazi sympathiser after she spoke at the “Let Women Speak” rally held on 18 March 2023 that was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis. Pesutto has rejected the allegation.

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