Brittany Higgins and partner David Sharaz had plotted out how to maximise the political impact of her bombshell rape allegations long before they first met Lisa Wilkinson, new leaks have revealed.
The former Liberal staffer sparked a firestorm when she claimed she had been raped in the Parliamentary office of then-Coalition defence industry minister Linda Reynolds.
But leaked audio reveals the pair had schemed to ensure the explosive allegations would cause the biggest uproar in Canberra before the upcoming federal election.
And even when Ms Higgins feared legal reprisals over the allegations, Mr Sharaz insisted in newly-leaked texts: ‘Politically, it would be very stupid.’
Mr Sharaz – whose wedding reception for his first marriage was themed around Labor politicians – boasted of using friends in Labor to help fuel the political outrage.
And at their first meeting with Wilkinson and Project producer Angus Llewellyn, the couple admitted they had planned out a specific timeline for her allegations to air.
Brittany Higgins and partner David Sharaz (pictured) had plotted out how to maximise the political impact of her bombshell rape allegations

The pair had a firm timeline in place long before they first met Lisa Wilkinson (pictured with Brittany Higgins at the Women’s March4Justice in Canberra in Match 2019), new leaks reveal

The couple told The Project they wanted the show to be broadcast in a Parliamentary sitting week so it could be raised at Prime Minister’s Question Time the following day (pictured, then PM Scott Morrison)
They told The Project team they wanted the show to be broadcast in a Parliamentary sitting week so it could be raised at Prime Minister’s Question Time the following day.
The couple also wanted to keep the outrage going into the following month at a hearing of Senate Estimates in March as part of their political campaign.
In leaked audio from the pre-production meeting on January 27, 2021 – ahead of the broadcast on February 15 – Wilkinson questioned the couple on their timeline to have the show broadcast before March.
‘That’s what we wanted to know,’ she asked them. ‘Why March?’
Sharaz explains: ‘We’ll get down to this later, but the reason we’ve chosen the timeline we have is because it’s a sitting week when we want the story to come out.
‘A break, and then the Senate recommences in March and that’s when I’m going to talk to – I’ve got a friend in Labor, Katy Gallagher, who will probe and continue it going.
‘So sitting week, story comes out, they have to answer questions at Question Time, it’s a mess for them.
‘March, Senate estimates. Hopefully we can try and get the [CCTV] footage for Britt’s clarity, and then [PM Scott Morrison] is going to call an election whenever he calls it.
‘That’s why Britt’s chosen that timeline.’
Ms Higgins chipped in to say the election would be called ‘soon’.
Mr Sharaz added later: ‘It all looks bad for them.
‘You can’t prosecute the Liberal Party. It’s only in the court of public opinion that can get them. You can’t get them in court.’
He claimed that Ms Higgins had told him: ‘I get one shot at this and it needs to be done right because my career’s going to be over after this happens.
‘If it’s just a footnote, I’ve ruined my career for nothing.’
Ms Higgins told the meeting she realised she was set to become a political football which would be weaponised by both sides once the show aired.
‘I am not naïve to the fact I’ll forever be tied to this story and it’s not about me broadly,’ she admitted.
‘It’s pretty much always going to be about the party and it will be about Linda [Reynolds] and that’s fine.
‘But it’s just hard to reconcile personally that you’re the least interesting part of your story.’
Mr Llewellyn later finalises the timeline with them, clarifying the key dates for the political backlash ‘so there’s questions in that week.’
Ms Higgins adds: ‘It would be good to get Question Time in…so they’re all stuck in Parliament House with it.’
Mr Sharaz also asked The Project team if they can enlist more ‘friendly MPs’ who could ‘fire questions at Question Time’.
Ms Higgins added: ‘I’m nervous about the day after. I don’t know if you guys do it but you get ‘friendlies’ to kind of back in your story.
‘I’m kind of nervous that I’m gonna be like, a little..’
Mr Sharaz adds: ‘There will be no friendlies?’ She replied: ‘No…’

David Shiraz and Brittany Higgins (pictured) wanted to keep the outrage going into the following month at a hearing of Senate Estimates in March as part of their political campaign

David Sharaz (pictured with Brittany Higgins) also asked The Project team if they can enlist more ‘friendly MPs’ who could ‘fire questions at Question Time’
In texts after the rape allegations came out, Mr Sharaz claimed he had contacted Labor figures including senator Gallagher, Anthony Albanese and Tanya Plibersek.
But the group also speculated about other politicians past and present who could be able to support them, including Julia Banks, Julie Bishop and Malcolm Turnbull.
‘He does hate Morrison,’ said Mr Sharaz. ‘Does he hate him that much?
‘That’s something that I do think about, I mean you [Brittany] have thought about it from a media side of things. You want some friendlies that can kind of keep it going.’
Just before the allegations went to air, Ms Higgins became worried about the legal ramifications but Mr Sharaz still tried to put them in political context.
‘Suing you looks like doubling down on the victim close to an election,’ he told her. ‘Politically, it would be very stupid. Everything dragged out in court.’
Texts also revealed Mr Sharaz had been in touch with Senator Gallagher and given her a transcript of Ms Higgins’ interview with The Project four days before the allegations aired.
The following day, Mr Sharaz passed on Ms Higgins’ mobile number to Ms Gallagher to allow them to talk directly ahead of the TV interview.
The leaked texts sparked a political row this month after the senator had previously told the senate, ‘No-one had any knowledge’ prior to the broadcast.


After the allegations aired, the couple focused their anger on then-PM Scott Morrison in another text exchange (pictured)

Texts also revealed Mr Sharaz had been in touch with Senator Katy Gallagher and given her a transcript of Ms Higgins’ interview with The Project four days before the allegations aired
Ms Gallagher ‘categorically’ denied she misled parliament and later said she had told Linda Reynolds at the time she’d been made aware of the allegations four days before the broadcast, but not weeks earlier.
‘I’ve been clear, I’ve been honest and at all times I’ve been guided by the bravery and courage of a young woman who chose to speak up about her workplace and from that we have had massive changes to that workplace,’ she said on Saturday.
‘(I was told) there was going to be some public reporting that a young woman making serious allegations about events that occurred in a minister’s office … were going to become public.
‘I categorically rejected, and you see that in the footage of the committee, I categorically rejected the assertion she was putting, which was that we had chosen to weaponise that information weeks ahead of being told about this.’
After the allegations aired, the couple focused their anger on then-PM Scott Morrison. Ms Higgins texted her partner: ‘He’s about to be f***ed over. Just wait. We’ve got him.’
Mr Sharaz replied: ‘I still hate the c***.’
Bruce Lehrmann was later charged with raping Ms Higgins, which he strenuously denied. His trial was abandoned in October over juror misconduct and all charges were dropped in December over concerns for Ms Higgins’ mental health.

Brittany Higgins (pictured outside court at Bruce Lehrmann’s trial) realised she was set to become a political football which would be weaponised by both sides once the show aired
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