Linda Reynolds Retracts ‘Mendacity Cow’ Remark Made About Brittany Higgins, Agrees To Pay Damages In Defamation Settlement

Attorney-General Christian Porter, on go away to deal with the mental well being stress from an allegation of historical rape, has no set date for returning to work. This situation led to her taking depart after she felt unwell when underneath parliamentary pressure over the Brittany Higgins problem. As a result of her medical problem, she pulled out of a National Press Club appearance. Her workplace mentioned in a statement she was reassessed by her heart specialist last Tuesday in relation to her pre-current medical situation. She made the announcement after coming under relentless strain over her dealing with of a rape allegation by her former staffer Brittany Higgins. Earlier in the week, Ms Higgins informed native media she felt unsupported by her boss and that she would lose her job if she reported her alleged rape to police.

• In response to Mr Hooke’s comments, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller mentioned he would want to know additional particulars before he may think about reopening the investigation.
• In the days after Ms. Higgins went public, three other ladies got here forward, telling local information shops that they had been sexually assaulted by the identical man whom Ms. Higgins accused of attacking her.
• “I actually have never questioned Ms Higgins’ account of her alleged sexual assault and have always sought to respect her company on this matter.
• The recent assertion from Reynolds on Friday followed information on Thursday that Higgins had engaged the providers of a defamation lawyer after the derogatory observation was published by the Australian.
• The government needs three of the five crossbenchers and negotiations involving varied points shall be sophisticated.

The contemporary upheaval adopted another tough day for the government, this time attributable to non-public comments allegedly made by Tasmanian Liberal Senator Eric Abetz in relation to Brittany Higgins, who says she was raped in Parliament House in Canberra. Ms. Higgins said last month that she had been assaulted by a co-worker in the minister’s workplace two years ago, whereas she was working as a media adviser for Ms. Reynolds. Ms. Higgins mentioned that after she informed the minister and other employees members what had occurred, she was made to feel that she would lose her job if she reported it to the police and felt unsupported by Ms. Reynolds. Ms. Higgins did not instantly reply to calls or textual content messages in search of clarification. But she stated in a press release that damages beyond the cost of her authorized charges can be donated to a charity supporting sexual assault survivors.

Linda Reynolds Signals She Is Ready To Apologise To Brittany Higgins For Calling Her A ‘Lying Cow’

She was also appointed to the new role of Minister for Emergency Management and North Queensland Recovery, having previously held duty for catastrophe recovery within the Assistant Minister for Home Affairs place. In early 2019, she was a strong opponent of the medevac invoice that expanded the medical evacuation of asylum seekers from offshore processing amenities to Australia. In a speech to the Senate, she said that the bill would encourage unauthorised arrivals by boat and that as a result the navy would “need to get well the bloated corpses of infants and women mauled by sharks”. is an Australian politician and former military officer who has been Minister for Defence within the Morrison Government since May 2019.

In Australia, an alleged sufferer’s testament is typically required – notably in sexual assault instances – for police to proceed with an investigation that has likelihood of prosecution. In a press release, Ms Reynolds said she had by no means questioned Ms Higgins’ sexual assault allegation. In August 2018, Reynolds was appointed Assistant Minister for Home Affairs in the First Morrison Ministry, serving underneath Peter Dutton. She was elevated to Cabinet in March 2019 as Minister for Defence Industry, as a part of a planned transition to the position of Minister for Defence following Christopher Pyne’s decision to retire on the 2019 federal election.

Authorities Minister

The prime minister stated on Thursday morning that he didn’t condone the comments however asked for understanding for Reynolds, imploring folks to consider comments they’ve made in what they believed to be a non-public setting. Higgins has reactivated her police complaint and has been interviewed to provide her account of events. While Reynolds has shut down questions concerning the aftermath of the alleged assault on the rationale that she needs to respect Higgins’ privateness, her former staffer has relieved her of that obligation in the hope questions might be answered. “In the meantime, I need to categorical how deeply sorry I am for these remarks and for any hurt and misery they have triggered,” the defence minister said. Higgins has been interviewed by police after reactivating her police grievance about the alleged rape. Prime minister Scott Morrison defended his minister after the feedback were made public.

The authorities wants three of the five crossbenchers and negotiations involving varied points might be complicated. Meanwhile the federal government is scrambling to attempt to take care of its industrial relations laws within the Senate subsequent week. “Senator Reynolds is recuperating nicely and appears ahead to resuming her duties as Defence Minister as soon as potential,” the statement says. Senator Reynolds’ absence from the Raisina Dialogue comes as her Coalition colleagues proceed to debate whether the West Australian will move to a decrease-profile ministerial portfolio for well being causes.

Alleged Rape Between Employees

On 23 August, she informed the Senate that she was “distressed and disturbed” by the behaviour of some Liberal MPs through the management battle, which had “no place in my party or this chamber”. “On Friday 5 March 2021, I publicly apologised to Ms Brittany Higgins concerning the comment about her to my staff on 15 February 2021,” Senator Reynolds mentioned within the assertion. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has retracted a comment calling former staffer and alleged rape sufferer Brittany Higgins a “lying cow” and agreed to pay damages. Ms Hickey also alleged that when discussing the case of Mr Porter, “the senator rapidly responded that yes, it was the primary legislation officer of the nation, Christian Porter, however not to fear, the girl is useless and the legislation will protect him”. Last week, Ms. Reynolds issued a formal apology, saying she had by no means questioned Ms. Higgins’s account. On Friday, in a short public statement, the minister retracted the remark, which, she mentioned, she had “by no means intended” to make public.