Minister’s Allegation

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32145, 14 November 1969, Page 9

Minister’s Allegation

(N.Z. Press Assn.—Copyright) MELBOURNE, Nov. 13. The former Australian Minister for Air (Mr Dudley Erwin) alleges that he was dropped from the Federal Ministry announced by the Prime Minister (Mr John Gorton) this week “because of a political manoeuvre.”

Asked by reporters yesterday what the manoeuvre was, Mr Erwin replied: “It wiggles, it’s shapely, and its name is Ainsley Gotto.” Miss Gotto is Mr Gortons private secretary. Twenty-three years old and strikingly attractive, she has worked for Mr Gorton since he became Prime Minister 22 months ago; before that she was secretary to Mr Erwin, when he was the Chief Government Whip. Mr Erwin would not give any details of how he thought Miss Gotto was involved in the loss of his Ministerial portfolio. The “Age” today reports Mr

Erwin as saying that in recent months Miss Gotto had been “the blockage” between him and Mr Gorton. “It built up until the position was intolerable,” Mr Erwin is quoted as saying. “As leader of the Government in the House of Representatives, it was necessary for me to speak to Mr Gorton every day. There were numbers of times when I wanted to speak to the Prime Minister and was not permitted to do so. “She ruled with a ruthless authority.” Miss Gotto, who was 21 when she was appointed private secretary to the Prime Minister at a salary of $5500 a year, said she had “no comment at all” to make on Mr Erwin’s allegation about losing his portfolio. In a television interview last night, Mr Erwin said that six months before he died, Mr Holt had had “a turn” in the Government Whip’s office at Parliament House, Canberra, and it seemed at the time to be a heart attack. “It was not until after Mr Holt’s death that we found out what was wrong,” Mr Erwin said. “We found out

later that he had a vitamin deficiency.” Mr Erwin said it had been decided after Mr Holt’s “turn” to keep it secret from the public, but, as Chief Whip, be had thought it proper to carry out a survey as to who would be the most likely choice as the next Prime Minister.

“Mr Gorton was the man I believed had the qualities to lead the country,” Mr Erwin said.

Later last night, the Prime Minister bitteriy refuted any suggestion that he had considered standing for the Liberal Party leadership before his predecessor died. “I was never approached by anybody before Mr Holt’s death with any suggestion that I should work against him or stand against him,” he said. “The first time it was ever suggested to me by anybody that I might stand for the leadership of the party was after Mr Holt’s death.” Mr Gorton added that he felt the implications in the reports of Mr Erwin’s statement “more deeply than any allegations that have ever been made against me.”