LIVE LIVE BLOG: Linda Reynolds v. Brittany Higgins defamation case - day eight By Charlotte Karp In Perth For Daily Mail Australia Published: 02:32, 13 August 2024 | Updated: 02:51, 13 August 2024 e-mail Advertisement Follow Daily Mail Australia's live coverage of Linda Reynolds' defamation case against Brittany Higgins . 01:29 Scott Morrison to give evidence Former prime minister Scott Morrison will give evidence in the WA Supreme Court on Tuesday via video link.
Mr Morrison was the leader of the Coalition in 2019 when Ms Higgins, a Liberal staffer, was raped by her colleague Bruce Lehrmann inside Linda Reynolds' ministerial suite in Parliament House. Ms Reynolds was the defence industry minister at the time. The Coalition was still in government in February 2021, when Ms Higgins went public with her rape claims in an online News Corp article and a television interview on The Project.
Her claims were a disaster for the Liberal Party - Ms Reynolds was grilled over the situation for a week during Question Time, to the point where she had a complete breakdown and nearly died due to a heart condition - the court has heard. She was accused of trying to cover up the rape, failing to support Ms Higgins, and making her choose between going to the police and her political career. Ms Reynolds strongly denies those claims, but she didn't properly defend herself at the time because she didn't want to betray Ms Higgins' confidence.
She also didn't think a criminal allegation should be li.