As it happened: WA news on Thursday, August 15

Breaking news from the WA Supreme Court: Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds’ lawyer has sought to have anti-sex assault campaigner Saxon Mullins take the stand over a fundraiser to bankroll Brittany Higgins’ legal fees for this case.

Reynolds’ lawyer Martin Bennett lodged an application to cross-examine Mullins under oath as early as next week after her solicitors claimed she had no documents to produce in relation to a subpoena issued last week.

Bennett issued demands on Higgins, her husband David Sharaz and Mullins for all communications between the trio, as well as political advisor Emma Webster and Higgins’ lawyer Carmel Galati, over the fundraiser launched on the same day Reynolds was giving evidence.

He said the fundraiser, the proceeds of which Galati is to hold on trust for Higgins, was part of a carefully calculated campaign to characterise the proceedings as Reynolds seeking to silence a sexual assault survivor.

Bennett said his request for an explanation as to the lack of documents had been refused.

“It seems impossible that there would be no communication on the date of Reynolds’ evidence regarding the arrangements to set that [fundraiser] up,” Bennett told the court.

Justice Paul Tottle said he would consider the application overnight and make a ruling in the morning.

Reynolds is suing Higgins for defamation over a series of social media posts accusing her of mishandling the rape allegation, which Higgins is defending on the basis the substance of the posts is true.

Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds’ brother has recalled a frank discussion with the then-defence minister about the adverse career and health impacts of allegations she covered-up Brittany Higgins’ alleged rape.

Taking the stand in the WA Supreme Court in Reynolds’ defamation action against Higgins on Thursday, Andrew Reynolds told the court he was shocked by claims she covered-up Higgins’ alleged raped by colleague Bruce Lehrmann in her ministerial office on March 23, 2019.

Linda Reynolds. Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald

Lehrmann, whose 2022 criminal trial was aborted due to juror misconduct, has maintained his innocence.

“She’s been fighting for women’s issues, for justice, all of her life. The idea that she would stand aside and try to cover it up was risible,” Andrew told the court when asked about the contents of Higgins’ tell-all interview with The Project.

In the weeks after Reynolds’ public breakdown amid intense questioning in parliament and from the media, Andrew described watching his previously healthy and active sister be resigned to the couch where she was curled up in her pajamas.

During a heart-to-heart about the political firestorm, Andrew told the court Reynolds said she had done “everything she possibly could” at the time of the alleged rape and that she was ready to take Higgins to the police until being advised against it.

And he recalled their frank discussion of the likely political fall-out, which he believed included a demotion.

“Being in politics as long as we both have, we both knew it would damage her career,” he told the court.

“This kind of mud sticks.”

Andrew told the court he had observed a “torrent of commentary” that had resulted in the complete degradation of Reynolds’ reputation on social media and believed she had learned to live with it rather than fully recovered from it.

Back to the Supreme Court now, where the psychologist who met with Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds after her public breakdown over the Brittany Higgins saga has recalled how she told him her character was being attacked and she feared losing her job.

Dr Nebojsa Nikolic told the court Reynolds’ GP on March 1, 2019, reached out seeking an urgent consultation.

Nikolic told the court during their appointment the following day she reported being “grilled” in parliament and the media over allegations she mishandled the sexual assault of one of her staff.

His clinical notes suggested she was exhibiting an “extreme fear” response amid concerns the damage to her credibility would cost her the role of defence minister.

“Her character was being attacked, and her morals and ethics were tainted,” Dr Nikolic told the court.

“I think she was highly anxious.”

The consultation came shortly after Reynolds almost collapsed in the senate after several days of questioning over allegations her former staffer Brittany Higgins had been raped by colleague Bruce Lehrmann in her ministerial office after a night out on March 23, 2019.

Lehrmann, whose 2022 criminal trial was aborted due to juror misconduct, has maintained his innocence.

Reynolds is suing Higgins for defamation over a series of social media posts accusing her of mishandling the rape allegation, which Higgins is defending on the basis the substance of the posts is true.

A refreshed Israel Adesanya has said he feels like the superhero Blade ahead of his bid to become a three-time UFC middleweight champion.

The 35-year-old declared fans will be blown away by the results when he takes on middleweight champion and arch-rival Dricus du Plessis at UFC 305 in Perth on Sunday.

Israel Adesanya after a 2022 win in Las Vegas.Credit: Getty Images

Adesanya (24-3, 16KOs) hasn’t fought since losing by unanimous decision to Sean Strickland in September last year.

The 11-month absence marks the longest break of Adesanya’s career, but it allowed him to heal his battered body and do plenty of soul-searching.

“I think you guys will see the best me you’ve seen yet,” Adesanya told reporters on Thursday.

“I’m the biggest I’ve ever been, the most muscular I’ve ever been. I feel faster. I surprise myself sometimes with the speed that I’m hitting with. I feel like I’m Blade in this one.”

Part of Adesanya’s soul-searching led him to the realisation that belts no longer matter to him.

Instead, he wants to rack up “heads”, and he would love nothing more than to add du Plessis to his pile.

Before winning the middleweight crown, du Plessis (21-2, 9KOs) riled Adesanya with comments about wanting to become the “first real African champ”.

The pair clearly don’t like each other, and they haven’t been afraid to express it. The animosity will add to the tension on Sunday at a sold-out RAC Arena.

AAP

Staying with the WA Supreme Court, former staffer Dean Carlson has recounted a heated phone call with Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds and then-chief of staff Fiona Brown over whether to go to police after colleague Brittany Higgins was found partially undressed in Reynolds’ ministerial office.

Carlson recalled the former defence minister being adamant the Australian Federal Police should investigate a security breach in which Higgins and colleague Bruce Lehrmann returned to Parliament House and left a ministerial office unlocked following a night out.

Senator Linda Reynolds at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday. Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald

But Carlson told the court Brown challenged that position, insisting they shouldn’t do so without Higgins’ permission.

He said the conversation became heated, and that he had backed Brown, telling the court he believed it was important Higgins had agency over any action and that her privacy should be paramount.

The compromise, Carlson said, was Brown reaching out to Higgins to ascertain whether she wished to lodge a complaint.

When grilled by Higgins’ lawyer Kate Pedersen, Carlson told the court he believed the matter to be a serious one, but maintained there had been no allegation at that time of sexual assault.

In the weeks that followed, Carlson said Higgins was offered the choice of remaining in Canberra or returning to the Gold Coast to be with her family but chose to join the federal election campaign trail in Perth.

But he noted she wound up taking several sick days, prompting him to request another member of staff check on her.

It would be almost two years before Higgins would go public with any allegations.

Taking you back to our earlier blog post on the East Perth Primary School spat, and the state government has responded to the letter sent by Perth’s lord mayor this morning, stating ratepayers would fork out up to 1.3 per cent more under the current land offer.

The state government is providing $4.2 million to the City of Perth in recognition of the loss of car-parking revenue during the construction of the school at the Queens Gardens location.

Planning Minister John Carey.Credit: Hamish Hastie

Basil Zempilas, who is also running as the Liberal candidate for Churchlands, has said this is well under the amount the City will lose, and has written a letter detailing the cost increase for residents and asking the government to reconsider its offer.

Perth MLA and Planning Minister John Carey has fired back, accusing Zempilas of “threatening his own ratepayers with an unjustified rate rise.”

Here is what he had to say:

I find it ironic that he implies he’s worried about City of Perth ratepayers, when at the first opportunity he’s abandoning Perth residents for his political ambitions.

Post construction of the East Perth Primary School, state government modelling shows the development of the site for housing will see the City receive more than $60 million of benefits, including a significant uplift in rates for the City of Perth.

This letter is clear evidence the Liberal candidate is simply playing politics as he continues to spread misinformation and fear-monger in the community.

Over to the West Australian Parliament where a report investigating outcomes for survivors of institutionalised sexual abuse has just been tabled.

The Community Development and Justice Standing Committee made 21 recommendations in volume 2 of its report, targeting the Catholic Church and the Christian Brothers for refusing to cooperate with the committee.

Committee member and Burns Beach MP Mark Folkard said the Christian Brothers’ refusal to engage with the inquiry hampered efforts to examine allegations against the religious institution.

“Are they concerned about protecting their reputation or addressing the grave harm that they inflicted on innocent lives?” he said.

“Are they protecting their financial sphere over the need for transparency and accountability?

“The actions of the Christian Brothers suggest a deliberate attempt to shield themselves from the consequences of their past action.”

Are they concerned about protecting their reputation or addressing the grave harm that they inflicted on innocent lives?

He said the decision to remain silent was indicative of broader issues within certain religious organisations.

“It is a tragic reality that some religious institutes continue to place survival of the institution and institutional wellbeing above the needs for those that they have harmed,” he said.

“This is just a profound moral failure.”

The report recommends the State Government publicly list known abusers and that religious institutes publish abusers’ identities on their websites.

More to come.

Over to the WA Supreme Court now, where Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds’ best friend of more than two decades has revealed the former defence minister broke down during a holiday over being relegated to the backbench after the 2022 federal election.

Denita Wawn told the court the respite trip the pair took to northern NSW alongside two of their closest friends ended with Reynolds in tears over what she believed to be the end of her ministerial career.

Reynolds’ friend described how she broke down on a holiday. Credit: Holly Thompson/ Supplied

Wawn detailed how she had watched her “resilient” and “driven” friend become emotionally fragile and reclusive after former staffer Brittany Higgins went public with allegations she had been raped by colleague Bruce Lehrmann in Reynolds’ ministerial office after a night out on March 23, 2019.

Lehrmann has maintained his innocence since his 2022 criminal trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.

In the days after Reynolds was hospitalised following intense questioning over Higgins’ tell-all interview with The Project, Wawn said the senator became reclusive, easily triggered and could not be left alone.

“She was a mess, both physically and mentally ... she was shaking, pale and weak,” Wawn told the court.

“Up until that time ... my observation of her was that she could pretty much cope with anything thrown at her.

“We stopped going out publicly because she felt uncomfortable, and felt people were giving her dirty looks, we changed our walking route and would just catch up at each other’s houses.”

Like many of those closest to her, Wawn said she feared Reynolds’ pre-existing heart condition combined with the stress she was under would kill her.

While Reynolds had gained confidence following a Federal Court judgment which dismissed claims of a political cover-up, Wawn told the court she believed that confidence to be “superficial”.

Reynolds is suing Higgins for defamation over a series of social media posts she claims accused her of mishandling her rape allegation and silencing victims of sexual assault.

Higgins is defending the action on the basis the posts were true.

The saga over the proposed East Perth primary school continues, with Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas writing a letter to Education Minister Tony Buti this morning, telling him it will be ratepayers that will have to pay for lost revenue from the carpark the school will be developed on.

On Tuesday it was announced the state government would repeal an act stopping the land’s development, and compensate the City of Perth $4.2 million for the loss of revenue from the carpark currently there.

WA Education Minister Tony Buti, Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas.Credit: WAtoday

But Zempilas has estimated the City would lose around $1 million per year over the next 30 years and is unhappy with the deal, made without his consultation.

“We estimate that the lost revenue from the carpark will lead to a rates increase to the City’s ratepayers of approximately 1.2 to 1.3 per cent,” he wrote in the letter.

“The City will effectively be contributing in perpetuity to the cost of this public school without any compensation.

“The offer of $4.2 million … falls way short of the City’s expectation of fair and reasonable.”

Zempilas also said, following what he described as a “very positive meeting” on May 23, the City had sent a letter with six options to resolve the land transfer issues, but never received a response.

The minister has been contacted for comment.

As Perth’s median house price continues to smash records, it’s not surprising that a record 30 suburbs have been added to the million-dollar club in the past financial year.

Only two new suburbs joined the list the previous year.

There are now 87 suburbs across the city that command this premium price.

Of the suburbs on the list, 23 recorded price growth over 20 per cent in the 12 months to June.

Leading the charge was Karawara, which almost doubled its median house sale price to $1,155,000.

Real Estate Institute WA president Joe White said the record number of new entrants reflected Perth’s strong price growth over the past 12 months:

Under normal market conditions you can expect to see a few new suburbs join the million-dollar club each year as their prices rise due to improved amenity or infrastructure, growing popularity for certain lifestyle features, or as a flow-on effect from price growth in neighbouring suburbs.

This financial year house price growth in Perth has accelerated and the median house price has increased 18.8 per cent.

See the full list here.