On Tuesday, Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison and other high-ranking officials apologized to every federal Parliament employee who had been sexually assaulted or bullied during their tenure.

On the first sitting day of the Australian Parliament, the comments were made in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and an apology was the first of a series of proposals submitted.

After a female employee claimed she was raped in a minister's office in 2019, a thorough investigation of the working culture of Australian government offices was performed.

Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins led the investigation, which began in March. 

It claimed that Parliament had a "boys club" culture of "bullying, sexual harassment, and sexual assault," as well as revealing that one out of every three members of employees in the legislative offices had been sexually harassed.

Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins claimed in 2019 that she was raped by a coworker in a minister's office, prompting the investigation.

She said she was persuaded not to report the incident to the authorities when it occurred just before the election.

She originally made the allegation in February of last year, speaking out against Australia's "culture of silence" in political parties.