Mr Howard told The Australian he had never accepted the claim Ms Brown was involved in a cover-up after Ms Higgins alleged she was raped by Bruce Lehrmann in Parliament House.
“I have always believed her description of how she reacted to Brittany Higgins’ complaints,” Mr Howard said.
Ms Brown, the former chief of staff to Liberal minister Linda Reynolds, was the subject of a brutal campaign by the Labor Party suggesting she had mistreated Ms Higgins, but brought her lawsuit against the commonwealth over the failure of her own colleagues in the Morrison government to protect her in the aftermath of the scandal.
Mr Howard said Ms Brown was “a highly respected” member of his staff when he was prime minister and he was delighted she had reached a settlement of her “totally justified action against the commonwealth”.
The $1.48m settlement stands in contrast to the commonwealth’s $2.44m settlement with Ms Higgins, awarded without a costly lawsuit after a one-day mediation that accepted the young woman’s unchallenged allegations she had been poorly treated by Ms Brown and then-senator Reynolds.
Ms Brown’s actions during the Higgins saga have since been vindicated by Federal Court judge Michael Lee and West Australian Supreme Court judge Paul Tottle.
Mr Howard told The Australian: “I found it difficult to believe the grossly inaccurate things said about her behaviour towards Brittany Higgins. “Fiona was honest, intelligent, and observed the highest standards in her treatment of others. Fiona did splendid work as assistant to my then chief-of-staff, Arthur Sinodinos. She concluded her work in my prime ministerial office with the enduring respect of all of her colleagues.”
In the settlement with Ms Brown, the commonwealth did not accept any liability nor apologise for the damage she suffered. Ms Brown has not received an apology from Ms Higgins or the Labor Party “mean girl” figures led by senators Katy Gallagher and Penny Wong who pursued her.
Senator Gallagher, now the Minister for Women, recently claimed that everything she and Labor did at the time was “appropriate”.
Asked whether she would apologise to Ms Brown, Senator Wong said: “You know the matter has been resolved and I don’t intend to comment further on it.”
Mr Howard said Ms Brown’s treatment by the “properly termed ‘Mean Girls’ was deplorable”. He noted she was also “let down by some on her own side who she might have expected to support her”
The commonwealth’s settlement with Ms Brown spared former prime minister Scott Morrison and his senior advisers the embarrassment of a trial over allegations they prevented Ms Brown from responding to Ms Higgins’ cover-up allegations and then downgraded her job.
Stripped of her duties overseeing key institutions such as The Lodge and Kirribilli House, Ms Brown’s role was reduced to performing menial tasks including authorising leave and ordering office stationery.
Mr Howard drew attention to Mr Morrison’s February 2022 national apology to Ms Higgins in parliament, which Ms Brown said in her Fair Work action falsely conveyed that she bore responsibility for Ms Higgins’ ill-treatment. “To many, the inexcusable contradiction in this whole affair was that Brittany Higgins received an apology from the prime minister of the day, yet Fiona Brown, who treated Brittany Higgins with total fairness and discretion, was so brutally and unfairly treated by various members of the Albanese government,” Mr Howard said.
Ms Brown, who has been left with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, revealed this week that her husband, Ninian, had been fighting an aggressive cancer and heart issues for the past 18 months.
“She has suffered a great deal and continues to be deeply concerned about her husband’s poor health,” Mr Howard said. “I hope that both of them can now enjoy their lives together.”
Additional reporting: Elizabeth Pike
Read related topics:Anthony AlbaneseScott Morrison