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 705 The bulk of these assertions are contrary to my findings based on the whole of the evidence, such as Ms Higgins' characterisation as to the evolution of the knowledge of Ms Brown, or as to the existence of some form of nefarious calculation being made as to the venue of the 1 April meeting, or any threatening of Ms Higgins if she went to the police, but it remains appropriate to address two final matters.

706 The first is Ms Higgins' assertion identified in her evidence above that those involved in failing to facilitate a move to the Gold Coast and guaranteeing her return were doing so in furtherance of an attempt to provide an obstacle to her pursuing her criminal complaint. The second is a matter which had been relied upon by Ms Higgins in out-of-court representations placed into evidence and gained some currency during the hearing as consisting of a roadblock or obstruction – that of the CCTV footage at Parliament House.

707 Upon close examination, any suggestion that these matters are indicative of a cover-up forcing her not to pursue her complaint are devoid of merit.

I.4Why and When the PMO was told and Support Services

708 Despite speculation by some as to how and when various persons within the PMO came to know about the incident, like with so many things, contemporaneous material not provided to nor reviewed by Ms Maiden or the Project team before publication in 2021, if properly analysed, reveals the apparent answer.

709 As is evident from Ms Brown's records, following advice received from M&PS and telling Ms Higgins it was necessary to report the matter to the PMO because of the security breach at their initial meeting on 26 March, the following day, Ms Brown briefed Mr Wong, who worked in the PMO about the after-hours access. Not only was it known to Ms Higgins the PMO would be told about the security incident, she also consented to a later communication to the same office and knew it would be discussed with the Chief of Staff.

710 This necessitates some background and explanation.

711 As is evident from Ex R99 (being candid messages between Ms Higgins and her friend Mr Dillaway), Ms Higgins had messaged at 5:45pm on 31 March 2019 and said that she had "Hit a bit of a wall since dad left. Not too excited for the week ahead haha" (at 759). Mr Dillaway's response, four minutes later, was to say: "I'm excited for week ahead because of you" and separately a minute later: "I'll support and help you through next week" (at 759). Lehrmann v Network Ten Pty Limited (Trial Judgment) [2024] FCA 369