Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

The facts are clear: Senator Gallagher has misled this Senate. Despite being given ample opportunity over the last two weeks to acknowledge that reality and to do the right thing by appropriately apologising and appropriately correcting the record, Senator Gallagher has instead obfuscated, avoided and outright refused to acknowledge that reality.

The facts are very clear. At Senate estimates on 4 June 2021, Senator Gallagher stated that no-one had any knowledge of an alleged sexual assault in Parliament House before those allegations became public on 15 February 2021. That was a statement made in a tone full of indignation. 'How dare you!' Senator Gallagher said at the time she made that statement. Then last week, on 13 June, Senator Gallagher confirmed:

I was provided with information in the days before the allegations were first reported …

That was not, as Senator Gallagher just said then, a 'heads-up'—