Labor and Liberal senators say it is important police investigate the leaking of court documents to ensure justice for future alleged rape victims.
The rare political consensus came as the federal opposition sought to turn up the heat on Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, who on Tuesday denied she misled parliament in 2021 about being aware of the Brittany Higgins rape allegations before they were made public.
Ms Higgins alleged she was raped by fellow Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann inside the Parliament House office of then-minister Linda Reynolds in 2019, a claim he has always denied.
Mr Lehrmann faced a criminal trial which was derailed by juror misconduct.
Prosecutors ultimately dropped the charge due to the impact of a second trial on Ms Higgins' mental health.
Questions over Senator Gallagher's conduct were raised after leaked text messages between Ms Higgins and her partner David Sharaz emerged last week, suggesting the pair strategised with her, then in opposition, ahead of the story being published.
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus told parliament the apparent unauthorised leak of court material provided under subpoena was deeply concerning and an AFP investigation was under way.
He said it was important victims of alleged sexual assault had confidence that if they came forward and reported what happened to them they would be treated fairly by the justice system.
Both sides of politics want answers on the leaked Brittany Higgins text messages and the overall handling of the rape allegations matter.
Liberal senator Andrew Bragg said on Wednesday Ms Higgins' private messages should not have been made public and it was appropriate an inquiry was under way.
"I expect that there will be a proper investigation because, I mean, why would anyone come forward with allegations of assault if this is the result?" Senator Bragg told ABC Radio.
Senator Bragg said the way the debate over the matter was unfolding in parliament was "very, very ugly".
"This whole thing has been a tawdry affair and it is hugely regrettable how it's played out publicly," he said.
Labor minister Jenny McAllister declined to comment on the AFP investigation, but was also concerned about the politicisation of the matter.
"I have to say that I am a little disappointed in the tone and the approach that's been adopted in recent days by some commentators," she said.
The political fallout from the matter continues to escalate as Liberal senator Linda Reynolds threatens to take defamation action against Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek in relation to a television interview that discussed the alleged rape.
The environment minister confirmed she had received an "interesting letter" on Tuesday.
"As far as I'm concerned, all legal options are on the table," Ms Plibersek said.
The Australian reported Senator Reynolds issued a defamation concerns notice to Ms Plibersek over an interview that aired on Monday in which the Labor minister was accused of wrongly implying the former Liberal frontbencher covered up the rape allegations.
Ms Higgins and Mr Lehrmann both worked for Senator Reynolds at the time of the alleged incident.
Deputy Opposition Leader Sussan Ley offered her general support to her colleague Senator Reynolds but was unable to comment further on the legal matter.
Ms Ley also defended another colleague, shadow attorney-general Michaelia Cash, regarding fresh questions raised about the timing of Senator Cash's knowledge of the alleged assault flagged by Ms Higgins on Twitter.
While Ms Ley had not seen the tweets, which had been posted on Tuesday night, Ms Ley said former ministers had given "extensive and detailed accounts of their actions".
She said Senator Gallagher still had questions to answer.
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