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| Australia news live: pressure mounts for inquiry into historical rape allegation made against Christian Porter | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| The attorney general has denied the allegation, declaring he won’t step down from his post. Follow latest updates | |
| Zali Steggall has also thrown her weight behind calls for an independent inquiry into the historical rape allegations levelled against Christian Porter (allegations he vehemently denies): | |
| Federal NSW independent Zali Steggall has told the Today show she was shocked to hear defence minister Linda Reynolds reportedly described her staffer Brittany Higgins who alleged she was raped by a colleague as a “lying cow”. | |
| Reynolds responded in a statement on Wednesday night, saying she had never questioned Ms Higgins’ account, but did not specifically deny making the remark. | |
| AAP says it’s understood the minister took issue at the suggestion she did not offer Higgins proper pastoral care after she was first told about the rape. | |
| Senate opposition leader Penny Wong is speaking to Radio National now. | |
| I’ll bring you the full comments soon but, in broad terms, she has said questions about integrity will hang over the government’s head unless there is an independent investigation into the historical rape allegation against Christian Porter. | |
| She was also asked about allegations levelled several years ago against Bill Shorten but says they are “very different” and aren’t comparable. | |
| Shorten was accused of raping a woman in the 1980s but Victorian police said in 2014 that they had investigated and there was “was no reasonable prospect of conviction”, and closed the investigation. | |
| More from treasurer Josh Frydenberg: | |
| He insisted on Sky news this morning that the historical rape allegations against Christian Porter were finished after the attorney general emphatically denied the claims: | |
| But this issue isn’t just falling along party lines. The Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce supported an inquiry, suggesting to ABC radio that it could end the “demeaning” speculation on social media: | |
| Treasurer and deputy Liberal leader Josh Frydenberg has appeared on Sky News this morning and has been asked about reports that defence minister Linda Raynolds called alleged rape victim and former staffer Brittany Higgins a “lying cow”. | |
| It seems he wouldn’t be drawn on if the language was unacceptable. | It seems he wouldn’t be drawn on if the language was unacceptable. |
| Although Reynolds hasn’t confirmed she said “lying cow”, her statement in response to media reports did not deny it. | |
| Let’s talk about those Buckingham Palace bullying allegations for a second. | |
| Ben Quinn, Archie Bland and Caroline Davies have the coverage: | |
| Buckingham Palace is to investigate allegations of bullying against the Duchess of Sussex by former royal staff member, it announced on Wednesday, as relations between members of the royal family appeared to descend to new lows. | Buckingham Palace is to investigate allegations of bullying against the Duchess of Sussex by former royal staff member, it announced on Wednesday, as relations between members of the royal family appeared to descend to new lows. |
| In a highly unusual statement, the palace said it was “very concerned” by a report in the Times of claims that Meghan had driven out two personal assistants during her time as a working royal, while Kensington Palace staff had been “humiliated” on several occasions. | In a highly unusual statement, the palace said it was “very concerned” by a report in the Times of claims that Meghan had driven out two personal assistants during her time as a working royal, while Kensington Palace staff had been “humiliated” on several occasions. |
| It came hours after sources close to Meghan and Prince Harry suggested that the emergence of the bullying allegations was timed to undermine their forthcoming interview with Oprah Winfrey. | It came hours after sources close to Meghan and Prince Harry suggested that the emergence of the bullying allegations was timed to undermine their forthcoming interview with Oprah Winfrey. |
| You can read the full report below: | You can read the full report below: |
| Good morning, Matilda Boseley to take you through the news today and the fallout from the Christian Porter press conference. | |
| If there is something you reckon I’ve missed or think should be in the blog but isn’t, shoot me a message on Twitter @MatildaBoseley or email me at matilda.boseley@theguardian.com. | If there is something you reckon I’ve missed or think should be in the blog but isn’t, shoot me a message on Twitter @MatildaBoseley or email me at matilda.boseley@theguardian.com. |
| Before I jump in, I just want to acknowledge how tough yesterday has been for so many groups of people, with Grace Tame’s amazing speech, the Porter saga, and defence chief Angus Campbell’s comments about young cadets needing to avoid making themselves vulnerable to sexual assault. | Before I jump in, I just want to acknowledge how tough yesterday has been for so many groups of people, with Grace Tame’s amazing speech, the Porter saga, and defence chief Angus Campbell’s comments about young cadets needing to avoid making themselves vulnerable to sexual assault. |
| If you found it particularly hard, or are even just feeling a bit “blah” this morning make sure you reach out to people or even think about calling the Australia crisis support service Lifeline on 13 11 14. | If you found it particularly hard, or are even just feeling a bit “blah” this morning make sure you reach out to people or even think about calling the Australia crisis support service Lifeline on 13 11 14. |
| If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au | If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au |
| This morning defence minister Linda Reynolds has not denied reports that she called her former staffer Brittany Higgins a “lying cow” the day she went public with allegations that she was raped by a male colleague in Reynolds’ office and did not receive adequate support from the minister or government. | This morning defence minister Linda Reynolds has not denied reports that she called her former staffer Brittany Higgins a “lying cow” the day she went public with allegations that she was raped by a male colleague in Reynolds’ office and did not receive adequate support from the minister or government. |
| According to the Australian Reynolds made the comment in the open part of her office and was heard by several staff members, including public servants on secondment from the Department of Defence. | |
| In a statement, Reynolds said she did make some comments expressing her feelings that media reports misrepresented some parts of the situation: | |
| Reynolds is off work sick and isn’t expected to be back until next Monday, but the minister is already facing questions about the viability of her position given the handling of the alleged rape case. | |
| Some other things to look out for: | Some other things to look out for: |
| Senior government ministers are standing behind attorney general Christian Porter’s decision not to step down after he was accused of a historical rape, an allegation he vehemently denies. Porter says resigning, would mean the “would be no rule of law” and would set a precedent that “any person in Australia can lose their career, their job, their life’s work, based on nothing more than an accusation that appears in print”. He says he does not support an independent inquiry for similar reasons. NSW police this week ended a criminal investigation into the allegations due to a lack of admissible evidence to proceed, partially because the alleged victim has since died. | |
| SA coroner David Whittle has asked SA police to further investigate the death of this woman, who took her own life in the state in 2020. Police had provided the coroner with a case file on Monday but the investigation was found to be “incomplete”, Whittle said. He noted the need to gather further information on allegations contained in recent media reports. He said he would determine whether to hold an inquest, once the investigation is complete. | |
| Prominent scientists are calling for the release of convicted NSW child killer Kathleen Folbigg. She was jailed in 2003 for murdering her children Patrick, Sarah and Laura, and for the manslaughter of her son Caleb, but a petition signed by 90 eminent scientists says important scientific and medical discoveries have since been made, pointing to evidence that the children died from natural causes. | |
| Buckingham Palace says it will investigate allegations of bullying made by former staff of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. This follows a Times article claiming that former staff of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were bullied out of their jobs. | Buckingham Palace says it will investigate allegations of bullying made by former staff of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. This follows a Times article claiming that former staff of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were bullied out of their jobs. |