Moira Deeming's mentor realized they had been betrayed.

Kim Wells, a member of the Liberal Party, recently revealed that he felt betrayed by his colleague Moira Deeming. He had been acting as a mediator between the Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto and Deeming, but realized that their agreement would never come to fruition.

Wells testified in the Federal Court of Australia today as part of a defamation trial against Pesutto. Deeming, who was expelled from the Liberals and is now an independent MP, brought the legal action against Pesutto for his comments about her attending a transgender-critical women's rights rally in 2023.

During the rally, right-wing activists were seen making Nazi salutes on the steps of the state parliament. Wells was questioned by Pesutto's barrister, Matthew Collins KC, about his involvement in trying to reach a compromise between the two sides.

Wells had been asked by deputy leader David Southwick to act as a mentor for Deeming and had helped broker a deal between the pair. According to Wells, the deal included a nine-month suspension for Deeming instead of expulsion from the party, as well as a joint statement from Pesutto's office condemning the presence of Nazis at the rally.

However, when Pesutto presented the deal to the party room, he did not include the promise of fully exonerating Deeming. This was when Wells realized that they had been "double-crossed." Collins questioned why Pesutto would make such a promise, to which Wells replied that it was likely to secure his leadership.

The court was also shown a series of emails from Deeming to Wells, expressing her frustration that the Liberal Party had not kept their promise to clear her name. She had only agreed to the suspension on the condition that all accusations against her were removed and she was publicly exonerated.

Other current and former Liberals, such as David Hodgett, Joe McCraken, and Ryan Smith, also gave evidence on Monday. More witnesses, including federal Senator Sarah Henderson and former MP Matt Bach, are expected to be questioned in the coming days.

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