Revellers partied so hard as they farewelled Tony Abbott on the night he was dumped as prime minister, they allegedly broke an Italian marble table as they danced on it in Parliament House.
The former PM tonight issued a statement saying "On the night of the leadership change I hosted drinks in the cabinet ante-room for staff and colleagues. During this event, a coffee table was damaged.
"I have asked my office to have the Department of Parliamentary Services invoice me for the value of the table.
It was my event so I take responsibility for it," the statment said.
Cleaners found pieces of the table in ministerial offices the day after Mr Abbott and staff hosted a farewell party in parliament's cabinet anteroom on the night of September 14.
However, officials in charge of parliamentary furniture have not investigated the matter and were not allowed to enter the room to retrieve the table until four days after the incident.
"We understand the table has been damaged by someone standing or dancing on it" #marbletablegate pic.twitter.com/yQn8u1QK6t — Alice Workman (@workmanalice) October 19, 2015
A Senate estimates hearing was told on Monday cleaners had found broken pieces of the $590 table - an original piece of furniture bought for the parliament in 1988 - on September 15 and alerted the office in charge of asset management.
"Quite a party," Labor senator Penny Wong said.
Department of Parliamentary Services assistant secretary, John Ryan, said staff were not allowed access to the anteroom until September 18, despite a number of requests.
While staff were allowed to remove the table for repairs, they weren't allowed to make a further inspection of other possible damage, Mr Ryan said.
Senator Wong read out an email from Mr Ryan to Department of Parliamentary Services first assistant secretary, Rob Barnes, in which Mr Ryan suggested the table was damaged by "persons standing or dancing up on it".
"More pieces have since been seen in the ministerial offices," the email read. Liberal senator Cory Bernardi said the email's description of how the table was damaged was "largely speculative".
Senate President Stephen Parry went further, saying the cleaners may have breached their duty of confidentiality and he would be seeking advice on this.
"It would have been a basic contractual obligation not to be reporting on what they find in ministerial offices," Senator Parry said.
Senator Wong said Senator Parry should instead find the people who broke the table, rather than pick on the cleaners.
An inspection found the table cracked in half and a small crack to the bronze frame. While one initial quote for repairs put the cost at $1000, other quotes were much higher.
Mr Ryan said no investigation had been undertaken into how the damage occurred.
Labor senator Katy Gallagher later questioned officials on whether doors in the prime minister's suite had also been damaged at the time of the party.
The question was taken on notice.
