SCANDAL OF GROPING MPS REVEALED
Miserable staff sexually abused and harassed, report says
COMMONS staff suffer “unacceptable” bullying and sexual harassment but fear speaking out, a report claims.
An independent inquiry said workers told of “breasts grabbed, buttocks slapped, thighs stroked and crotches pressed/rubbed against bodies”.
In Gemma White QC’s report, one said their time working for an MP was “the most stressful and hostile period” of their life, adding: “My sense of self was crushed.”
Another said: “As long as getting BY OLIVER MILNE political jobs is dependent on who you know and who you’re related to, sexual harassment will be a necessary evil for ambitious young people like me.”
Staff who complain risk “career suicide”, despite recent changes to the system in the wake of the #MeToo movement and Pestminster scandals.
While the report said “most MPs treat staff with dignity and respect”, it described the problem of bullying and harassment as “sufficiently widespread to require an urgent collective response”.
It concludes that there must be a “fundamental shift” away from regarding MPs as “650 small businesses” with near complete freedom to operate.
Some 220 people gave evidence with the most common complaint being that MPs would “demean, belittle and humiliate staff, often in public”.
Shadow Leader of the House Valerie Vaz said the findings were “shocking and totally unacceptable”.
The House of Commons Commission said: “We will look urgently at the recommendations.
“We condemn bullying and harassment of MPs’ staff.”