Murdered Jo’s sister: Sex claim Brendan’s trying to do the right thing... he is a wonderful dad
MURDERED Jo Cox’s family vowed to support her widower yesterday as he quit two charity posts after facing sexual harassment claims.
The late MP’s sister, Kim Leadbeater, said Brendan Cox “did the right thing” in admitting “inappropriate” behaviour while working at Save the Children.
Father-of-two Mr Cox, whose wife was shot and stabbed by a far-right terrorist in 2016, left his posts at More in Common and the Jo Cox Foundation after accusations about his past emerged.
Jo’s sister said: “As a family we will support Brendan as he endeavours to do the right thing by admitting mistakes he may have made, and we respect him for doing so.
“Brendan is a wonderful father and I have no doubt about the happiness he brought to Jo.” It was reported yesterday that Mr Cox is alleged to have forced a Save the Children worker against a wall outside a London bar in 2015, holding her by the throat and saying: “I want to f*** you”. Months later, it is alleged he forced himself on a separate woman at Harvard University during a US trip. Mr Cox said allegations against him were a “massive exaggeration” and he did not accept the claims made in the US. He declined to discuss the Save the Children incident directly, according to a newspaper. But Mr Cox added: “At the root [of rumours] was a sense, which is fair, that I could overstep the line.”
Save the Children said Mr Cox, its former chief strategist, was suspended and faced disciplinary action after being accused.
It added: “Mr Cox resigned before it could be completed.”
Mr Cox said in a statement: “I want to apologise deeply and unreservedly for my past behaviour and for the hurt and offence that I have caused.
“In the aftermath of Jo’s murder, I promised that I would dedicate my life to two things, firstly loving and protecting our children and secondly fighting the hatred that killed Jo.
“In the last few days allegations from several years ago have resurfaced that makes concentrating on both of those tasks much more difficult.
“For that reason I decided to step down from my current public roles for the time being.
“I do acknowledge that during my time at Save the Children I made mistakes and behaved in a way that caused some women hurt and offence.”
Labour MP Jess Phillips said: “I love Brendan, he’s my friend, his family are friends with my family. But it’s not enough just to say, ‘I’m sorry’. You have to show how you’re going to change. Brendan, more so than many I’ve seen in this area, is actually trying to do that.”
Her Labour colleague Yvette Cooper said: “I think that he has done the right thing. Hopefully, we are seeing a change now in the climate and in culture.”