An Independent panel has ruled out a further investigation into sexual harassment allegations against Liberal Democrat peer Chris Rennard, concluding that the case cannot be reopened without new evidence.
The party asked three independent adjudicators, who are Liberal Democrat members, to reassess Rennard’s conduct after receiving advice that a 2013 investigation into complaints from four women had been flawed in several respects. The panel’s decision followed legal advice.
Party leader Ed Davey said he was “disappointed and upset” by the outcome. He said the women had been let down by the earlier investigation and that it was frustrating the allegations could not be reinvestigated. Davey added that he had confidence in the party’s current complaints system.
Rennard said the complaint should now be published in full, arguing that it showed the reopened investigation should never have taken place. He said the allegations had been investigated and dismissed by police and independent inquiries in 2013-14, and that the party had accepted those conclusions at the time. His solicitor, Richard Cannon, described the renewed complaint as legally flawed from the outset.
The original complaints were made by former deputy party chair Alison Goldsworthy, academic Alison Smith, former Nick Clegg adviser Bridget Harris and former councillor Susan Gaszczak. A 2013 review by senior lawyer Alistair Webster KC said there was less than a 50% chance of proving the case against Rennard beyond reasonable doubt, while describing the evidence of conduct that violated the complainants’ personal space and autonomy as broadly credible.
Davey has previously said he does not believe Rennard should be a member of the Liberal Democrats or the House of Lords, but does not have the power to remove him. Rennard, a former party chief executive, was awarded a life peerage in 1999.
Sources: The Guardian World.