Sexual harassment 'widespread' in Australian parliament

Sexual harassment and bullying are rife in Australia's parliament, affecting both lawmakers and staff, a high-profile inquiry into the institution's "sexist culture" has found.

A review found that more than half of Australia's parliament members who responded had experienced at least one incident of sexual harassment, bullying or actual or attempted sexual assault.
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A review found that more than half of Australia's parliament members who responded had experienced at least one incident of sexual harassment, bullying or actual or attempted sexual assault.

One in three people working in Australia's parliament have experienced sexual harassment, an independent inquiry into parliamentary workplace culture found.

After a seven-month investigation, a government-backed report detailing widespread improper behaviour was published on Tuesday. 

The review found that more than half of the people who responded had experienced at least one incident of sexual harassment, bullying or actual or attempted sexual assault.

That included 63 percent of the country's female parliamentarians.

"Such experiences leave a trail of devastation for individuals and their teams and undermine the performance of our parliament to the nation's detriment," the report said.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the findings were "appalling" and "disturbing" and called on parliament to clean up its act.

"Like anyone who works in this building, I find the statistics that are presented here, of course appalling and disturbing," he told reporters in Canberra.

"I wish I found them more surprising."

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'Damning expose of sexist culture'

The report made 28 recommendations, including greater gender balance among both lawmakers and their staff, new alcohol policies and the creation of a new human resources office to deal with complaints. 

Morrison had ordered the review in February after his party came under pressure over its handling of an alleged rape inside the building.

Parliamentary staffer Brittany Higgins said she was raped inside a minister's office, after a night out with conservative Liberal Party colleagues.

Support for his conservative coalition government fell in the wake of the rape allegation, while thousands of women marched across the country calling for greater equality.

Higgins on Tuesday welcomed the report and thanked "the many brave people who shared their stories which contributed to this review".

Greens' Senator Sarah Hanson-Young described the report as a "damning expose of the sexist culture and harassment in politics".

"The statistics and comments are shocking, but for many women here they are not surprising and ring true to our own experiences," she said.

READ MORE: Australia PM rejects calls for probe into Porter rape allegation

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