Canberra, March 5 : Australian Defence Minister Linda Reynolds on Friday apologised to a former government staffer who has alleged that she was raped in Parliament House and demanded an apology after Reynolds called her a “lying cow”.
Brittany Higgins, who in February went public with allegations that she was raped by a colleague in Reynolds’ office in 2019, on Thursday threatened legal action over the Minister’s comments, which were made to staffers, Xinhua news agency reported.
In a statement, Higgins said that the language was “incredibly hurtful” and demanded that Reynolds publicly apologize or face possible legal action.
“I appreciate that it has been a stressful time but that sort of behaviour and language is never excusable.
“It’s just further evidence of the toxic workplace culture that exists behind closed doors in Parliament House,” Higgins said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that the comments were “inappropriate and wrong”.
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