Stepping up on harassment
After recent allegations of sexual harassment in the political arena, several major parties are strengthening their policies on dealing with complaints of misconduct.
The rise of the #Metoo movement has spurred the Green Party to develop a specific sexual harassment policy, while Labour has begun overhauling its process after a review into a youth summer camp that ended in accusations of sexual assault.
National Party leader Simon Bridges said the party would review its workplace practices following reports of the conduct of MP Jami-lee Ross, which included revelations of a sexual relationship with another MP and allegations of harassment.
Green MP Jan Logie, who is Parliamentary Under-secretary to the Minister of Justice on Domestic and Sexual Violence, said the party had stepped up and believed other parties should too.
‘‘I think the primary driver is the national and international conversations and realising this is the time to step up … here [Parliament] there are certainly some indications recently that work needs to be done,’’ Logie said.
‘‘We have been asking ourselves, are we doing enough to ensure a safe environment that is free of sexual harassment?
‘‘And looking at if we are best equipped to be able to respond effectively and support people if something does go wrong.’’
When the policy was complete, it would also cover MPS. The process had been going on for a few months and would ensure the party was focused on prevention and making it easier for people to come forward, she said.
Labour Party president Nigel Haworth said the youth camp incident in February was a ‘‘very salutary experience’’ and the party recognised it did not act promptly or sufficiently.
The party was undertaking a review of all its health and safety provisions and sexual harassment was part of it, he said.
Recommendations from a review of the summer camp allegations saw the party immediately bring in interim guidelines, he said.
‘‘But we have more work to do on this on a permanent basis.’’
One of the recommendations was to provide greater certainty of security in events, so the party now required all events to have a nominated safe person and room.
‘‘We also have a process for investigating complaints that is quicker and more effective than the model we had before, with a guarantee of security and confidentiality.’’ The policies were for staff, member organisations and volunteers. MPS were also covered by party rules as well as following instructions from the prime minister.
The party was also working with the Sexual Abuse Prevention Network, Haworth said.
The network’s general manager, Fiona Mcnamara, said the organisation was in the process of consulting with Labour on its draft sexual harm prevention and response policy and was not currently working with other political parties.
When Bridges was asked if National had a specific sexual harassment policy, he said he was unsure. ‘‘We do have processes. I think the question here going forward is can we do better?’’