UK Labour MP May Be Suspended for Two Days Over ‘Bullying’ Allegations

CC BY 3.0 / UK Parliament / Chamber of the House of CommonsChamber of the House of Commons
Chamber of the House of Commons - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.04.2022
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Earlier on Thursday, Liam Byrne said that he was "profoundly sorry" for the incident and that he “has already taken the steps to ensure this never happens again”.
British Labour Party MP Liam Byrne is expected to be suspended from the Commons for two days over accusations of ostracising former assistant after an office dispute in 2020.
Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Kathryn Stone upheld the allegations against the Birmingham Hodge Hill MP on Thursday after a probe into the matter conducted by Parliament's Independent Expert Panel.
The investigation found that Byrne, a former cabinet minister, had committed a “serious breach” of bullying rules by cutting off contact with the aide for several months and denying him access to his IT account.

“The impact of this behaviour was compounded by the fact that it occurred during the first period of lockdown when the complainant was physically separated from work colleagues, uncertain of his future work status and had undergone a period of ill health”, according to the panel.

It also found that the 51-year-old MP had “sought to present his actions as a reasonable HR strategy in response to this incident”, which the Panel claimed “was bullying”.
Byrne has already apologised for the incident that he said occurred “two years ago at the beginning of [COVID] lockdown, following a workplace dispute that led” him “to send the complainant home”.

“I did not resolve the dispute correctly with a proper disciplinary process, and having nevertheless extended the complainant's contract, thereby failed to fulfil my obligations as an employer and Parliament's Behaviour Code. This constituted an ostracism which was a breach of Parliament's Behaviour Code which I strongly support, and caused distress for which I am profoundly sorry. I have apologised in full to the individual concerned”, Byrne stressed.

FILE - Leader of the British Labour Party Keir Starmer gestures as he makes his keynote speech at the annual party conference in Brighton, England, Sept. 29, 2021.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 28.04.2022
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He thanked the Panel for “recognising the genuine remorse I felt about the impact on the individual concerned, the steps I have already taken to ensure this never happens again along with the work still to do, and for concluding that I did not deliberately act to delay the investigation”.
A Labour spokesperson said the party “fully supports” Byrne’s proposed two-day suspension.
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