Sacking of adviser who insulted MP ‘unfair’, says panel

A LABOUR MP unfairly sacked a senior adviser and ex-girlfriend after she called him a “first-class idiot” in an email copied into Sir Keir Starmer, an employment tribunal has ruled.

Khalid Mahmood fired Elaina Cohen, a long-term aide, after she sent him a series of messages accusing him of being “bullying”, “spiteful” and an “insecure, crooked womaniser”.

The former shadow minister – an MP for more than 20 years – dismissed Ms Cohen, whom he once dated for several years, for disrespecting him and trying to intimidate him. But the tribunal ruled that by overseeing the disciplinary process himself and deciding her fate, the 61-year-old had treated her unfairly.

The MP’S decision to stop talking to her after she accused one of his parliamentary staff of being involved in illegal activity also made her feel isolated, the panel ruled.

He must pay her compensation, although the amount may be reduced due to her behaviour, the tribunal said.

The central London hearing was told that Ms Cohen and the MP for Birmingham Perry Bar entered a “romantic relationship” in 2003 that ended in 2005 and Ms Cohen had continued to work for Mr Mahmood but their relationship became increasingly “dysfunctional”.