Australian government minister was ‘accused of rape and under investigation’ last year, says ABC

Former political staffer Brittany Higgins

There have been a wave of sexual misconduct allegations involving government officials in Australia recently and a series of reports detailing harassment and bullying in Parliament House.

Last week, former Ministerial staffer Brittany Higgins publicly alleged that she had been raped in the office of the then Defence Industry Minister by another staffer in March 2019.

She said she’d held back from making the allegation for two years, for fear she would lose her job, and that she had received little to no support from people within the government and her party.

The announcement was followed by three other women claiming the same man had also assaulted them.

The Morrison Government has been under intense pressure over its response to Ms Higgins’ case.

There are four inquiries underway including a multi-party investigation aimed at ensuring Parliament is a safe working environment.

On Friday, Labor’s national executive adopted a code of conduct and three policies dealing with sexual harassment prevention and response, harassment and bullying, and handling of complaints.