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Rob Harris

Rob Harris

Rob Harris is the national correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age based in Canberra. He is a former Europe correspondent.

Elizabeth Watt, a former employee of Australia’s peak, publicly funded women safety organisation, had to escalate a dispute to the Federal Court after being denied her job back following maternity leave.

Elizabeth worked at Australia’s top women’s safety body - until she went on mat leave

Elizabeth Watt spent years fighting the federal agency after being denied her pre-parental leave role. Her case exposes a loophole that experts say leaves mothers lagging the rest of the world.

  • Rob Harris

Latest

Orange “sponsored passes” give lobbyists access to Parliament House.

Decades of secrecy to end with Parliament House lobbyists unmasked

A major overhaul of the parliamentary pass system will force the public disclosure of business representatives roaming private corridors.

  • Rob Harris
Bob Carr, Pauline Hanson, Peter Beattie

‘Simply wrong’: former Queensland premier says Hanson was not jailed in a ‘witch hunt’

The One Nation leader on Thursday accused Beattie and Liberal Party president Tony Abbott of orchestrating a “political witch hunt” that led to her 11-week imprisonment.

  • Rob Harris
The review came after people who worked at the AOFM blew the whistle to Treasurer Jim Chalmers and senior Treasury officials about concerns they had about the leadership and capacity of the agency.

National security risk as parliamentary network fails seven out of eight basic cyber checks

A damning report from the auditor-general reveals deep vulnerabilities across critical federal government safeguards, amid warnings the system may no longer be fit for purpose against sophisticated foreign espionage.

  • Rob Harris
Incoming Vida Fund chief executive Brittany Higgins with Advisory Council Chair, Wendy McCarthy and Fund Board Director, Jo Dyer,

Brittany Higgins returns to frontline politics to fight ‘rising tide’ of misogyny

The former Liberal staffer has been appointed executive director of the progressive Vida Fund, launching a direct campaign against One Nation and the “new right”.

  • Rob Harris
Political strategist Isaac Levido says “tech divergence” is sharpening voter expectations and intensifying frustration with government delivery.

‘Uber in 90 seconds, health appointment in nine months’: Why voters are turning to populists

Campaign mastermind Isaac Levido says the rise of Donald Trump and Pauline Hanson is not an unexpected phenomenon, but a direct consumer backlash against sluggish governments.

  • Rob Harris
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Kiwi counterpart Christopher Luxon traded light-hearted barbs in Noosa on Saturday.

CGT would be a ‘wrecking ball’ for Kiwi economy, NZ PM tells Albanese

The prime minister and his Kiwi counterpart have traded light-hearted barbs in Noosa, masking a deep divide over capital gains tax as both leaders face looming domestic battles.

  • Rob Harris
Lincoln Folo has been appointed federal director of the Liberal Party.

Federal Liberals turn to Nationals boss to help revive party’s fortunes

Federal Liberal president Tony Abbott said the appointment of Lincoln Folo was part of an urgent organisational renewal effort to combat the rising threat of minor parties.

  • Rob Harris
Shadow attorney-general Michaelia Cash.

Shadow attorney-general defends decision to allow staffer to write article praising Roberts-Smith

Former West Australian editor Brett McCarthy, now an adviser to shadow attorney-general Michaelia Cash, praised Roberts-Smith despite his arrest on five counts of the war crime of murder.

  • Rob Harris
Donald Trump and Anthony Albanese meet in the White House.

‘Unwarranted’: Trump proposes new 12.5 per cent tariff on Australia

The Trump administration has proposed an extra 12.5 per cent tariff on Australia, angering the federal government.

  • Matthew Knott and Rob Harris