‘Inappropriate behaviour has no place in National Assembly’

INAPPROPRIATE behaviour” has no place in the National Assembly and will not be tolerated, the Assembly Commission has said.

Presiding Officer Elin Jones and the Assembly Commissioners spoke out after a survey of staff and AMs found 37 people had experienced incidents of inappropriate behaviour.

Another 37 who experienced or witnessed inappropriate behaviour said they did not report it.

Among the reasons given for not pursuing a case, some said it involved a more senior official or AM and they thought it would have career repercussions or would not be addressed appropriately.

The Assembly Commission undertook an anonymous and confidential survey between April and May, which was open to commission staff, AMs and their support staff.

In total, 128 responses were received with a participation rate of 16.8% – around one in six of the 800 that could have responded.

According to the Dignity and Respect survey, 32 people said they had experienced inappropriate behaviour on multiple occasions.

Another five said they experienced inappropriate behaviour on one occasion.

But 69 (62%) respondents said they had never experienced inappropriate behaviour while working at the National Assembly.

A total of 29 respondents said they had observed inappropriate behaviour on multiple occasions while 13 said they had seen it once.

In May, the Assembly passed a new dignity and respect policy that tries to regulate AMs’ private and public conduct.

Ms Jones, the presiding officer, has written to the party leaders at the Assembly highlighting the main findings and asking them to raise the issues within their own groups.

She and Assembly Commissioners Joyce Watson, Suzy Davies, Adam Price and former Commissioner Caroline Jones – now the leader of the Ukip group – issued a joint statement following the publication of the survey findings.

“Today we are restating the view that inappropriate behaviour by members, their staff or Commission staff will not be tolerated,” they said. “Collectively, we all have a responsibility to ensure that the National Assembly for Wales is a safe environment for those who work here, for those who visit the estate and for anyone who has dealings with us.

“As commissioners, elected representatives and employers, we take our responsibility to create an inclusive and respectful workplace free from any form of harassment extremely seriously.

“Overall, a range of responses indicate different levels of trust in our processes and procedures. However, it also provides further evidence that it is difficult to report politicians or senior managers, and concerns were raised about the potential career limitations of making formal complaints. That is entirely unacceptable.

“The survey does suggest that there are experiences where incidents of inappropriate behaviour have been dealt with effectively without the need to instigate formal procedures and general recognition that the Assembly is a good place to work.

“But clearly, there is much more to be done to change personal behaviour so that it is consistent with the dignity and respect policy and to ensure that individuals feel empowered to come forward so that their complaints or concerns can be resolved.

“The policy covers all unwanted behaviour – that is, behaviour which is not encouraged or reciprocated by the recipient, regardless of whether it was meant to cause offence, and whether it is repeated or an isolated incident.

“The results, nevertheless, make for uncomfortable reading for us as an Assembly Commission and indeed for all AMs. Every single one of us – AMs, support staff, Commission staff and contractors - has a role to play in creating the right culture and environment here at the Welsh parliament.

“Every one of us – staff, managers and AMs – has personal responsibility for making that change happen.”