Prosecutors get Brittany Higgins case

Prosecutors in the ACT have received a brief of evidence in the matter of Brittany Higgins’ alleged 2019 rape in Parliament House.

Brittany Higgins speaks to the media. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw

Prosecutors in the ACT have received a brief of evidence in the matter of former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins’ alleged 2019 rape in Parliament House.

Shane Drumgold, the territory’s Director of Public Prosecutions, confirmed he had received the evidence and would advise on whether there was enough evidence to prosecute.

Ms Higgins’ rape allegation sparked a national reckoning on sexual assault and harassment in the workplace when she went public with her story in February.

Earlier this month, the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research revealed a 61 per cent increase in sexual assault incidents reported to police in March compared to the average.

The spike was largely attributed to the media coverage of Ms Higgins’ alleged assault and Australian of the Year Grace Tame’s advocacy for assault survivors.

An internal review into parliamentary workplace responses to sexual assault, prompted by Ms Higgins’ alleged assault, called for the establishment of an independent complaints body to deal with incidents in parliament.

Scott Morrison had tasked Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet deputy secretary Stephanie Foster to lead the review. Ms Foster worked with Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins, who is also running a separate nine-month independent investigation into parliament’s workplace culture.

Ms Jenkins is currently travelling around Australia to hear first-hand accounts of MPs and staffers who have worked in parliament. She is due to hand down an interim report in July, with a final report due in November.

Ms Higgins alleged she was raped in the office of then defence industry minister Linda Reynolds by a male colleague in 2019.

In a May Senate hearing, AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw revealed there had been 19 reports of misconduct, including potential criminal activity, involving parliamentarians and their staff since Ms Higgins came forward with her allegation.