‘No breach’ on alleged rape night, says guard

A Parliament House security guard who let Brittany Higgins and her male colleague into the office of Linda Reynolds has denied there was a security breach on the night of the alleged rape.

Brittany Higgins outside Parliament House. Picture: Getty Images

A Parliament House security guard who let former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins and her male colleague into the office of Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has denied there was a security breach on the night of the alleged rape.

The security guard, Nikola Anderson, also disclosed she had not been contacted by police or parliamentary investigators looking into the allegations for two years, until last week.

Ms Anderson’s account, given to the ABC’s Four Corners on Monday, contradicts the government’s explanation that the ­alleged perpetrator was sacked over a “security breach”.

Government sources have told The Australian the Liberal staffer accused of the rape was sacked from Senator Reynolds’ office over a security breach that included him gaining access to a minister’s office on false pretence and for failing to behave “honestly, with integrity”.

“What was the security breach?” Ms Anderson told the ABC. “I am one of the only people who knew what happened and no one has come to talk to me, no one has asked me what happened.”

The program also reported that it was Julian Leembruggen, a senior adviser to Scott Morrison, who was the staffer in the Prime Minister’s office told about the rape allegations within a fortnight of the incident in 2019.

The Australian revealed last month that one of Mr Morrison’s staff was said to be “mortified” after learning of the alleged rape from a friend of Ms Higgins’.

Mr Leembruggen has previously denied to The Australian he was told about the alleged rape, saying the conversation he had with the staffer was about finding Ms Higgins a job.

Ms Anderson also said she found Ms Higgins naked in Senator Reynolds’ office at 4.20am on the same night, but then “shut the door” and “exited the room”. She said Ms Higgins was clearly intoxicated when she entered the building with the man alleged to have raped her at about 2am.

The new details emerged after Mr Morrison’s senior bureaucrat said his review into who in the government knew about the rape allegation had been put on hold a fortnight ago — despite Mr Morrison telling parliament last week that he had no update on when he would receive the review.

Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Philip Gaetjens revealed on Monday that his investigation, initiated by Mr Morrison on February 17, had stopped and it was not clear when it could restart after he received advice from Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw that it might hamper a criminal investigation.

Mr Gaetjens was tasked with checking what Mr Morrison’s ­office knew and when. Mr Morrison has maintained his staff first became aware of the incident on February 12 and he personally did not know until February 15. Labor claimed that was implausible.

“On the 9th of March the AFP commissioner informed me it would be strongly advised to hold off finalising the records of interviews with staff until the AFP could clarify whether the criminal investigation into Ms Higgins’ sexual assault allegations may traverse any issues covered by the administrative process I was undertaking,” Mr Gaetjens said.

Mr Gaetjens told Mr Morrison and his office on March 9 that he was “putting the inquiry on hold”.

Anthony Albanese accused the Prime Minister of misleading parliament after he told the house last week that Mr Gaetjens “has not provided me with a further update” about when he would receive the PM & C report.

Mr Morrison declared he had done “no such thing”.

“I’ve been very clear that the conduct of this inquiry is a matter for the secretary and he is conducting that inquiry at arm’s length from me and I advised the house … he had not given me an update on when the report would be finalised and a timeframe for that to be provided,” he said.

“There was no deadline or timetable that was available to me when I reported to the house.”