Ms Hickey said she asked Senator Abetz why the security guards hadn’t stepped in knowing how drunk she appeared to be.

“He responded abruptly that if any security member dared to question the validity of access to the Parliament, by anyone who held a security pass, they would be sacked,” she said.

“I felt sick, knowing that the last line of protection for this young woman was not able to be provided due to the practices and protocols of that Parliament.”

Senator Abetz was chairing a Senate estimates committee on Wednesday morning and strenuously denied saying the comments Ms Hickey attributed to him.

“I have drafted a statement categorically denying the mischievous assertions made under parliamentary privilege,” he said.

“I can assure you that that which has been asserted by the Speaker is categorically and utterly rejected by me.”

In a statement, Senator Abetz said Ms Hickey’s “defamatory allegations” under parliamentary privilege were categorically denied.

“Allegations of rape are serious matters and have always been treated as such by me. Sexual assault is an issue on which I’ve been consistently outspoken including domestic violence,” he said.

“Ms Hickey’s suggestions otherwise is simply false. As someone who was on the inaugural committee of a women’s shelter and its honorary legal adviser for a decade prior to entering Parliament, I reject outright her suggestions and gross mischaracterisation of our discussion.”

Senator Abetz said Ms Hickey had not raised concerns with him about their conversation at the ceremony.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison stood by Senator Abetz given his denial, saying he would continue to serve in his role in the Senate.

“The comments that have been referred to by the Speaker are obviously repugnant,” Mr Morrison said in Question Time. “But what I can only refer to is the absolute denial of those statements by Senator Abetz. I was not a party to this conversation.”

Ms Hickey won her seat at the 2018 state election but caused controversy when she did a deal with Labor and the Greens to be installed as Speaker against the wishes of then-premier Will Hodgman. A long-time member of the Liberal Party, she was disendorsed as a Liberal candidate ahead of the next Tasmanian election due in 2022.

“What has changed? The Premier telling her on Sunday she was no longer wanted by the Liberal Party,” Senator Abetz said.