When Liberal MP Taylor Martin bombarded his lover Lucy Wicks with vicious texts ... trends now
Liberal MP Taylor Martin stood aside from the parliamentary partyroom when a barrage of 'ugly' text messages he sent his former girlfriend describing her as a 'f***ing idiot' and a 'dumb sl*t' were publicly exposed.
But in a move that has sparked anger within the party, Daily Mail Australia can reveal Mr Martin voted at a key NSW state council meeting in the Grand Ballroom of Sydney's Fullerton Hotel on February 24.
Mr Martin, who earns $172,000 as a member of the NSW Legislative Council, was excused from sitting with his colleagues in Parliament when his abusive texts to then-sitting federal MP Lucy Wicks were published in the press last July.
In the messages, which he admitted were 'ugly', Mr Martin called Ms Wicks a 'f***ing idiot', a 'dumb s***', a 'sicko', an 'absolute c*** of a person' and a 'f***ing pig ignorant b***h'.
The messages sparked an external investigation that has dragged on for more than eight months - and Mr Martin has sat on the crossbench at Macquarie Street ever since, distanced from the party.
So his presence at the Liberal state council meeting last month - where he cast a vote supporting his friend, powerbroker Alex Hawke, from being expelled by the party over an intra-party feud over preselections - shocked some party members.
Taylor Martin MLC was stood down from the NSW Liberal parliamentary party room back in July amid uproar over text messages he sent to former MP Lucy Wicks
Mr Martin was spotted among the hundreds of Liberal branch members attending the state council meeting in the Grand Ballroom of Sydney's Fullerton Hotel on February 24. He voted against an unsuccessful motion to expel party powerbroker Alex Hawke from the state party. Hawke has not publicly commented on the effort
One attendee told Daily Mail Australia that Mr Martin's presence at the council meeting was extraordinary, given he no longer sits in the parliamentary party room.
'It doesn't pass the pub test,' the attendee said.
'He has been stood down from the party room, it's just a reality that he should not have been there.'
Other witnesses said Mr Martin was smiling and 'jovial' as he chatted with his colleagues and factional allies.
Mr Martin attended a crucial Liberal state council meeting on February 24, where his vote helped to secure his ally Alex Hawke's position within the party (pictured in 2017 next to Mr Hawke, and two seats down from Lucy Wicks)
The wedding came just five months after Mr Martin publicly apologised for past conduct, after his former boss and partner Lucy Wicks lodged a formal complaint accusing him of 'five years of abuse'
Membership in the parliamentary partyroom is separate to being a branch member.
But the Liberal Party never clarified that Mr Martin's votes would still be counted during behind-closed-doors meetings outside of Parliament.
Timeline twist in text investigationAs the investigation into Mr Martin approaches its ninth month, Daily Mail Australia can reveal questions have been raised about the timeline of the complaints process.
A source with knowledge of the investigation said concerns about Mr Martin were first raised back by Ms Wicks to a member of the state executive in November 2021 - much
