Rape victim accuses Labour of covering up report showing sexual harassment 'rife' in party
4 min read
An activist who claims she was raped by a senior Labour official has accused the party of sitting on a report which reveals sexual harassment is "rife" in the organisation.
Bex Bailey said she was angry that the outcome of an investigation by top QC Karon Monaghan remains under wraps nearly five months after it was delivered to Labour bosses.
The probe was set up by the party after Ms Bailey revealed last year she was sexually assaulted at a Labour event in 2011.
When her allegations first emerged, Jeremy Corbyn praised her "enormous bravery" and pledged to do "whatever it takes" to eradicate sexual harassment from the Labour party.
Speaking to the BBC last year, Ms Bailey said it took her two years to "summon up the courage" to report the incident, and that she was warned that doing so could harm her career.
Karon Monaghan was appointed to carry out an investigation into Ms Bailey's claims as well as a wider review of Labour's processes for dealing with sexual harassment.
PoliticsHome revealed in June that her report had been given to party officials, but they had then passed onto another inquiry into sexual harassment being carried by Labour's in-house QC, Gordon Nardell.
In a new BBC interview, Ms Bailey - who was allowed to read the report only under supervision by a member of Labour's staff - accused the party of dragging its feet over her calls for a fully independent system for handling complaints.
She said: "I know that Karon's report found that not only is sexual harassment rife in the Labour party as we've all known and feared, which is the reason why I did the interview originally, but actually that it's not being dealt with.
"It's not just my case that's not been handled properly, but we've got a situation where the report clearly says that ... senior members of the Labour party even have closed their eyes to these issues. They have trivialised sexual harrassment, accommodated it and not handled it as they should have done and I think now is the time finally to start taking this seriously, put it back on the agenda."
Labour's ruling National Executive Committee will meet on Tuesday to decide which rule changes it will recommend at the party's annual conference in Liverpool next week.
Ms Bailey said that unless they approve a fully independent system for dealing with complaints, it will be another 12 months before the issue can be considered again.
She said: "The key recommendations and what I and other women in the party have been calling for, for a long time, is that we need independence in the complaints system, which means that instead of staff and elected officials investigating and adjudicating on themselves and their friends, there is an independent expert or experts in place who can do that and make a recommendation to the party.
A Labour party spokesperson said: "The Labour party is committed to continually improving our procedures for dealing with sexual harassment complaints and we thank Bex Bailey for her work to improve these procedures and for her incredible bravery.
"Karon Monaghan QC’s report assessed the party’s previous procedures, which we recognise were not fit for purpose. These procedures have since been improved, for example by introducing a helpline for members to report complaints, anonymising all cases, and appointing an independent specialist organisation to offer confidential advice and support to any individual affected by sexual harassment within the party.
"The party is currently considering further changes to our procedures in light of Karon Monaghan QC’s report, to ensure sexual harassment complaints are always dealt with promptly, fairly and with utmost confidentiality."
A Labour source said: "The party is proposing a rule change on this matter, which will be considered at the NEC meeting tomorrow, and many of the recommendations made in Karon Monaghan QC’s report have already been implemented."
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