Defamation lawsuit against Bruce Lehrmann LIVE BLOG: Brittany Higgins’ old boss accuses two senior politicians of trying to ‘cover up’ themselves as she is questioned about what she REALLY told alleged rape victim – as Higgins flies to France to get a to start new life

Fiona Brown was ordered by two ministers, Alex Hawke and Linda Reynolds, to report Brittany Higgins’ allegations to police – without the former staffer’s consent – six days after the alleged attack, on March 29, 2019.

Under cross-examination by Lisa Wilkinson’s barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC, Ms Brown (pictured) said on Tuesday she did not think ministers were looking out for Ms Higgins.

Ms Chrysanthou suggested to Ms Brown that Mr Hawke, the former immigration minister, had asked her to report the matter to the Australian Federal Police because it alleged a breach of the law and it would look “completely terrible” if the ministers would do nothing about it. .

Ms Reynolds also asked her to report the alleged crime to police.

Ms Brown said she did not think there was any consideration of what Ms Higgins wanted.

Sue Chrysanthou told Ms Brown: “You understood from your conversation with Minister Reynolds, didn’t you, that Minister Reynolds understood that there had been an allegation of a crime.”

“Ms Higgins had a memory and she felt that based on that, even without complaint, even without outright accusation, she felt that I should report it to the police and say that these two people came in after hours and were drunk. and the lady had a memory.

“For me, I needed more than that and I didn’t have the right – it was Mrs Higgins’ right.

Ms Brown said she understood ‘that a complainant had to be in control of some part of their situation and it was up to them to be in control, so Ms Higgins had still not made an allegation to me.

‘She had a memory of it, but she never said anything about it. That’s why I had to allow her her freedom of choice.”

Ms Chrysanthou said: ‘The reason you had heated conversations through Mr Hawke and Ms Reynolds to report the matter to the AFP was not because they cared about Ms Higgins, but because they were concerned about covering themselves?’

Mrs Chrysanthou asked: ‘Did they cover themselves?’

She told the court she feared she could be sacked for disobeying two ministers, but she strongly believed that going to the police without Ms Higgins’ permission was ethically wrong.

Ms Brown had been asked to go to a local police station and make a report herself, rather than going to AFP at Parliament House.

She told the court: ‘There were two 23-year-olds at stake, you can’t just walk into a police shop and do that.’

Ms Brown had asked Ms Higgins if she would make a report, but she said she did not.

Ms Higgins’ father was traveling to Canberra that weekend and she said she wanted to discuss the situation with him before deciding whether to report it.

The court previously heard that Ms Higgins had not discussed the situation with her father.