Senator Linda Reynolds was the victim of a “heartless” Labor attack in the Senate involving “aggressive behaviour” in the chamber, Tasmanian senator Wendy Askew has told a defamation trial.
Senator Reynolds is suing her former staffer Brittany Higgins over a series of social media posts containing alleged mistruths that she believes damaged her reputation.
Senator Askew told the Perth court that after Higgins went public in 2021 with accusations about the mishandling of her alleged rape and a political cover-up, Senator Reynolds was targeted in parliament.
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“I was very conscious of the questions being asked relentlessly throughout that period towards Senator Reynolds,” she told the Western Australian Supreme Court on Friday.
“Especially the aggressive behaviour, the way she was being targeted and even just the mannerisms across the chamber.
“They were just heartless.”
Senator Askew said her friend and colleague of 20 years tried her best to answer the questions but the criminal nature of the rape allegation and security breach in her office meant it could become a police matter, preventing her.
“Watching her being asked repeatedly the same questions, similar questions in different ways, it really did take the toll on her,” she said.
Senator Askew recalled the day Senator Reynolds left the chamber “visibly upset” and distressed before she was rushed to a Canberra hospital suffering cardiac issues.
She said the senator regularly took leave after that following media reports or court cases related to Higgins’ allegations.
“Especially when the staff were being mentioned, we found that they were being impacted,” she said.
“There’s (also) been a number of occasions where we’ve had to send her to the nurse at parliament house and give her leave straight away so she can go to a doctor’s appointment or to the hospital.”
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Senator Askew said during some long parliamentary sittings the senator would say: “I just can’t do it. I can’t get through the day”.
Retired Liberal MP Steve Irons said he met Higgins at polling booths in Perth in the weeks after she was allegedly raped in Senator Reynolds’ ministerial suite.
“I found her to be bright, bubbly, good personality, friendly,” he said.
Higgins’ defence statement of claim says she felt “isolated, traumatised, depressed, unsupported and confused” during her time in Perth for the 2019 federal election campaign.
Senator Reynolds’ lawyer Martin Bennett asked the court for permission to subpoena Walkley award-winning journalist Nina Funnell to ascertain if she communicated with Higgins about a crowdfunding webpage to raise money for her legal fees and medical costs.
The Chuffed Stand With Brittany has raised more than $50,000 since it was launched on the same day Senator Reynolds started giving evidence during the trial.
Bennett said it and Higgins’ social media post during the first week of the trial about sexual violence against women mischaracterised the case and carry an imputation and criticism of Senator Reynolds.
“If it’s done at the urging or in concert with Ms Higgins it’s a matter that Your Honour should probably take into consideration in terms of aggravation of damage,” he said.
Higgins’ Instagram post was a photo of a book titled How Many More Women? How the law silences women, along with the words: “Pertinent reading”.
Justice Paul Tottle said he would consider the matter.
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