The big questions left unanswered about the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins at Parliament House

Who knew? When did they find out? And what, if anything, did they do about it?

It’s nearly a week since former Liberal Party staffer Brittany Higgins went public with her bombshell allegation she was raped by a colleague in a minister’s office.

But many questions remain unanswered, and some assertions are hotly contested. This has fuelled a perception that the incident was seriously mishandled by the Federal Government and parliamentary authorities.

The Opposition has claimed the handling of the incident points to a “culture of cover-up”. Ms Higgins says she felt pressured to choose between going to the police or continuing a promising career in politics.

Some of the Prime Minister’s closest and most trusted…