ACT Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee shares happy news she is pregnant

Ms Lee, who will be 14 weeks' pregnant on Saturday, says she is excited but still apprehensive after suffering two miscarriages last year.

She and her partner Nathan Hansford are expecting a little girl, a sister for their daughter Mia, 3.

"It's been a nerve-wracking couple of months but it's been very, very good to see the support I've had since I've been talking to colleagues and, of course, family," she said.

Ms Lee, 43, said she had informed her colleagues and Chief Minister Andrew Barr about her pregnancy.

Her return to work will depend on, most importantly, the baby.

"As we all know, babies tend to move along to their own schedule so a lot of it will depend on how the pregnancy goes and, I guess, how the birth happens," she said.

"At this point, looking at the due date, which is April, I'm seeing if I can get back in time for the budget which is in the first week of June.

"But that's all subject to what happens with the pregnancy."

A former lawyer and university lecturer, Ms Lee has been Opposition Leader for nearly two years, taking over the role in November 2020.

Ms Lee has spoken before about the pain of a miscarriage, including one she suffered before the birth of Mia.

"There are a lot of circumstances that are stacked up against us and we've had two miscarriages last year, very early on," she said.

"I don't know how other families go through it, but for us, when you're pregnant and you bypass that milestone in terms of when that miscarriage happened, that's like, 'Oh, thank God!'.

"And then you go to 12 weeks and you breath a sigh of relief.

"While nothing is guaranteed, the fact that we've made it past the weeks I reached the last two times when I suffered the miscarriages, is an enormous relief. But I'm always conscious of the risks of being pregnant at this age."

Her partner Nathan was "over the moon".

"In the beginning, I guess, it was difficult to allow ourselves to be fully happy and bask in what was happening but I think there's a lot more acceptance and relaxation now, which is good," she said.

"It's not easy being the partner of a parliamentarian and I do rely a lot on him for support and there's no doubt that will greater as the months go by. But we're very excited and looking forward to the new challenges."

Ms Lee said she was very close to her two sisters and hoped for the same bond between her daughters.

"I never wanted one child, I always wanted to try for another, even though I knew it would be difficult," she said.

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Their three-year-old daughter Mia had her own special ways of getting ready for the baby.

"It's very cute. In the morning Mia will rub my belly and say, 'Good morning'," Ms Lee said.

"She insisted on buying her sibling a little present over the weekend. So we were at the Oaks Estate spring fair and there were some handmade goods at a stall and she bought a handmade little dummy clip and she hasn't let go of it."

Ms Lee said she was lucky to have workplace and family support but juggling her job and family would always have its challenges, and now, not least, her pregnancy.

"I take my job very seriously. I do think it's more than a job, I see it as a duty to the people of Canberra, to represent them and do the best I can for them," she said.

"It's a privilege to have this job. But, at the same time, I'm mindful to put the health of my unborn child first.

"The challenge will be a juggling act. I've done it before. Not in the same role, there will be different challenges but what I'm grateful for is an extremely supportive family and also my colleagues who have also been very supportive."

Ms Lee said if society wanted more women in busy jobs and in parliaments, them having children just had to be accommodated and regarded as normal.

"I'm fortunate to work in a very supportive workplace that is open and flexible but I'm also conscious of other workplaces that aren't necessarily able to do that," she said.

"I think it's important to normalise that children are part of our lives. If you want more women, if you want more mothers, to be engaged in different professions and industries, no matter what it is, it is part of the norm."

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