Guests at the gala event saw Liberal Vice President David Southwick and frontbencher Richard Riordan lead Mr Davis out of the venue. Two witnesses confirmed he had refused to leave, and one said he was “waging war.”
Before MPs tried to force him out, witnesses said he behaved in a way that made people uncomfortable, including hugging men and women and talking close to people who did not want to engage with him. One person said they saw Mr Davis fall over on two different occasions at night.
David Davis (center) with guests at the Multicultural Commission gala dinner.
Sir. Davis had a driver handed over by the government outside the event because his position as head of the upper house entitles him to a driver.
A liberal said Mr Davis was “one event away from ruining his career”.
The State Liberal Party failed in an attempt last year to replace car accident MP Tim Smith in Kew’s seat.
Sir. Davis, who lined up with the support of some of Mr. Smith’s main backers, lost the primary by 99-64 votes to former Young Liberal president and Business Council employee Jess Wilson.
Liberal House of Representatives David Davis.Credit:Joe Armao
Some in the party were surprised by his decision to run for the lower house. Others felt it would make sense to move in anticipation of either becoming treasurer next term if the coalition won the election in November, or potentially the next opposition leader.
Opposition leader Matthew Guy attended the event, where he sat at a table with Prime Minister Daniel Andrews. A spokesman for Mr Guy said the opposition leader was unaware of Mr Davis’ behavior at night, but has since been made aware of it.
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No disciplinary action has been taken against Mr Davis.
Davis sat at a table with colleagues, including multicultural affairs spokesman Craig Ondarchie and sports and tourism spokeswoman Cindy McLeish.
This month, Mr Davis seemed to be wrongly claiming that the coalition’s political statements on emissions targets and a mental health tax were not in fact twists, and the party’s position on the issues had not changed.
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