Ben Fordham has raised two pressing questions about the million-dollar government payout Brittany Higgins received, saying the secrecy surrounding the decision ‘stinks’.
The 2GB host is calling on the government to confirm the dollar figure of the settlement – believed to be up to $3million – and to clarify Finance Minister Senator Gallagher’s involvement in the entire case.
Ms Higgins received the money following a one-day mediation in December 2022 after launching a civil suit against her former employers Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash – and the well as the Commonwealth – over the handling of her sexual assault allegations during her time as a parliamentary staffer.
The man she accused, Bruce Lehrmann, strenuously denied the allegations, and the criminal charge against him was withdrawn after the trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.
On Thursday morning, Fordham said: ‘We are never going to know for sure what happened inside the minister’s office that night in Parliament House.
‘We know that Bruce was lying to his girlfriend about what he was up to, but he’s always denied he assaulted Brittany Higgins and detectives… had questions about Brittany’s credibility. They described her as evasive.
‘So why was she given $3million?’
Ms Higgins received up to $3million of taxpayer money following a one-day mediation in December 2022
Fordham also questioned Senator Gallagher’s role in the settlement, noting it was her department which approved the payout.
When in opposition, Senator Gallagher grilled the Coalition over the handling of Ms Higgins’ complaints.
Later, audio emerged from Ms Higgins’ interview with Lisa Wilkinson and the project in which her boyfriend, David Sharaz, described a ‘friend’ within Labor who was willing to ‘probe and continue it going’.
‘So sitting week, story comes out, they have to answer questions in question time, it’s a mess for them,’ he said. That friend was later identified as Senator Gallagher.
Fordham called for further transparency, noting: ‘This is the same Katy Gallagher who had heavily pursued the government… The same Katy Gallagher who David Sharaz had tipped off before the bombshell interview saying ”something big was coming”, the same Katy Gallagher who had a private phone call with Brittany after the allegations.’
‘Katy Gallagher hit Linda Reynolds with question after question… is that not a conflict of interest?’
‘If all of that doesn’t stink, I think you’ve lost your sense of smell.’
Later, audio emerged from Ms Higgins’ interview with Lisa Wilkinson and the project in which her boyfriend, David Sharaz, described a ‘friend’ within Labor who was willing to ‘probe and continue it going’
When in opposition, Senator Gallagher grilled the Coalition over the handling of Ms Higgins’ complaints
Fordham noted he doesn’t believe in ‘blaming the players’, but ‘blaming the game’.
Senator Gallagher has repeatedly maintained that it was the finance department which granted the payment, not her individually as minister.
Ms Higgins has long maintained she ‘loved’ the Liberal party, and hoped that by coming forward she would help bring about reform.
The Liberal party has been dogged by a perceived women’s issue for years, credited as one of the key problems bogging the party down as it limped toward the last election.
‘I loved my party, I loved the Liberal party,’ Ms Higgins said in court. ‘It sounds absurd. I didn’t necessarily want to hurt them. I wanted to reform this issue.’
Ms Higgins made a police complaint and also went to the media with her allegations, a decision she told the court she ‘stood by’.
‘I tried both avenues. I thought, I’ll speak about this in the media, I’ll do my act of service in leaving and talk to the media, and I’ll also speak to the police,’ she said.
In addition to the criminal matter, Ms Higgins pursued a civil suit against her former employers. While criminal proceedings were dropped, the payout she received was in response to the civil suit.
Both the Labor Government and the Opposition are refusing to be drawn publicly on questions about the payout, citing the ongoing inquiry by retired judge Walter Sofronoff into the DPP’s investigation and prosecution of Mr Lehrmann.
Ms Higgins worked in the offices of both Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash
Mediation lasted just one day and the final settlement was never disclosed, however reports suggest it could be as much as $3million.
Ms Higgins maintains the actual payout is substantially lower.
Chris Merritt, Vice President of the Rule of Law Institute and legal affairs contributor for The Australian, said: ‘It is difficult to see how the Higgins settlement complies with the longstanding rules governing the way the federal government is supposed to deal with monetary claims.
‘It is also difficult to see how those responsible for this settlement could not perceive that outlaying taxpayers’ money in breach of those rules might trigger the interest of regulators – including the National Anti-Corruption Commission.’
Mr Merritt argued there were only two possible avenues for Ms Higgins to be awarded a payout exceeding $100,000.
First, a legal professional would have been required to state the settlement reflected the claim a ‘meaningful prospect of success in a court of law’.
Alternatively, the Attorney General could intervene to determine usual precedent should not apply in this case, deeming it an ‘exceptional circumstance’.
It is unclear which route the mediation took.
In February, 2GB’s Ben Fordham said: ‘The government should reveal why it settled the compensation claim and they should tell us how much money was paid,’ he said during a segment on air
During the mediation hearing, Ms Higgins’ boss, Linda Reynolds, was told she must not attend the hearing, or provide any evidence.
She alleged she was told the government would backflip on an assurance to pay her legal fees if she attended the hearing.
Scott Morrison has also been repeatedly criticised for apologising to Ms Higgins on the floor of parliament when the court proceedings had not concluded.
‘I am sorry. We are sorry,’ Mr Morrison told Parliament. ‘I’m sorry to Ms Higgins for the terrible things that took place here. And the place that should have been a place of safety and contribution turned out to be a nightmare.
‘But I am sorry for far more than that, for all of those who came before Ms Higgins and endured the same.’
Mr Morrison was later forced to clarify his apology had nothing to do with the criminal allegations before the court after backlash from the accused’s lawyer.
The apology was described as concerning and hypocritical, given so many complainants prior to Ms Higgins had not received similar treatment.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk