A media adviser for West Australian Premier Colin Barnett has resigned after admitting he leaked false information to the media about opposition leader Mark McGowan and sent a photograph of his house.
James Larsson sent a text message to journalists on January 16, saying Mr McGowan was at a pub.
Mr McGowan was actually at home with his children at the time.
Mr Larsson also sent an email to journalists with photos of Mr McGowan's house at Rockingham, in Perth's south.
It has since been reported that Mr McGowan, who has labelled himself a regular family man with working-class credentials, owns a home worth $1.4 million, similar to Mr Barnett's Claremont property.
Mr Barnett told reporters it was a "silly thing to do by a young man" and had cost Mr Larsson his job, but he did not deserve to be hung out to dry.
"While the image of the house was publicly accessible through Google Earth, it was not the right thing to do, it was inappropriate to email an image of a member of parliament's house to the media. It was wrong and I apologise to Mr McGowan and his family that it happened," he said.
Mr Barnett said it was not the style of politics he had ever engaged in and Mr Larsson had crossed the line with his actions.
He said Mr Larsson, who was on an estimated $100,000 salary, had breached standards of propriety and integrity.
Mr Barnett said he was not directly involved in discussions about Mr Larsson's future, but Mr Larsson had been informed he was not welcome in Mr Barnett's office.
He said Mr Larsson could have worked elsewhere in government but chose instead to resign on Monday morning.
Mr Barnett said he was confident that Mr Larsson had acted independently and his superiors were not aware of his actions until last Friday.
He said there was no "dirt file" on Mr McGowan or anyone else.
Although comparisons had been drawn with the actions of Prime Minister Julia Gillard's press secretary on Australia Day, the two were more "coincidental" than similar, the premier said.
"What happened in Canberra was mischievous activity by a press secretary ... certainly anticipating that that would cause a reaction from the Aboriginal community, and we saw it and it was a shameful day for Australia," he said.
Mr Barnett said Labor had been trying to portray him as living in a beachside luxury in Cottesloe, but he lived in Claremont, at least 1.5km from the beach, while depicting Mr McGowan as a working-class man who understood the needs of families better than the premier.
"Was Mark McGowan being absolutely truthful in the way he portrayed himself? You can judge," he said.
Shadow treasurer Ben Wyatt said bringing families into politics would create a "grubby political culture".
"I shudder to think that this is the way the next 12 months is going to progress in the lead-up to an election, where traditionally family homes, families, have not been part of the public debate," he said.
"It appears that Colin Barnett's office, now on a number of occasions is peddling lies by way of mobile phones, and abuse by way of emails."
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