Lisa Wilkinson has been dropped from the Bruce Lehrmann rape trial

Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash will be called to the witness stand next week, but the Ten journalist, whose Logies speech in June caused the trial to be delayed, will no longer appear.

Liberal Senators Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash are still set to be called to the witness stand next week.

Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds will be called to give evidence in Bruce Lehrmann’s high-profile rape trial in Canberra on Tuesday.

Reynolds’ former assistant media adviser Brittany Higgins has accused Lehrmann of raping her inside her boss’s ministerial office at Parliament House in the early hours of March 23, 2019.

Higgins alleged the assault occurred in the then-defence industry minister’s office after a night out drinking with colleagues in Canberra shortly before the 2019 election.

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Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty to sexual intercourse without consent.

Reynolds has been subpoenaed to appear as a prosecution witness on day 11 of the trial.

She is expected to be the final crown witness before Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold closes the crown’s case on Tuesday.

This comes as Brittany Higgins is expected to return to the witness box to complete her cross examination on Friday.

The 27-year-old’s cross examination commenced last week but was suspended on Monday after the court was told that the complainant was unavailable for the last four days. 

The court has heard that the former Liberal staffer’s evidence is expected to be completed by lunchtime. 

The court has continued hearing evidence from key witnesses during Higgins’ absence this week but there is a non-publication order over all of that evidence until Higgins completes her cross-examination.

More than a dozen witnesses who were slated to give evidence in the trial will no longer be called.

These include The Project’s Lisa Wilkinson, whose Logies acceptance speech in June caused the trial to be delayed by more than three months.

Journalist Samantha Maiden, who won a Walkley for her reporting of Higgin’s story, has also been removed from the witness list.

Higgins’ former boss, who the court has heard she covertly recorded, Senator Michaelia Cash and Higgins' boyfriend David Sharaz are expected to be called to give evidence on Monday.