There’s been outrage among Lib Dem activists this afternoon at the announcement that an independent party review has cleared former party chief executive Chris Rennard of sexually harassing female members and that no further disciplinary action will be taken. QC Alastair Webster said Rennard “ought to reflect upon the effect that his behaviour has had and the distress which it caused”, and that “an apology would be appropriate, as would a commitment to change his behaviour in future”. He added, however, that “it is my judgment, considering all of the evidence collected, that it is unlikely that it could be established beyond reasonable doubt that Lord Rennard had intended to act in an indecent or sexually inappropriate way. Without proof of such an intention, I do not consider that such a charge would be tenable.”
In the statement he issued in response, Rennard went as far as to claim that he looked forward to resuming his “roles within the Liberal Democrats”, prompting even greater anger among activists. But when I put this suggestion to a Lib Dem source, I was told that “hell will freeze over” before Rennard returns to his previous posts.
I’m told that a statement from Nick Clegg will be issued at some point this afternoon. Here’s what party president Tim Farron has said on the subject:
“The Liberal Democrats have taken the allegations made against Lord Rennard extremely seriously, which is why we appointed an eminent and experienced QC to examine the evidence. As a party we have no choice but to accept Alistair Webster QC’s conclusions, but that does not mean I am content. Lord Rennard is not a current employee of the party and therefore the threshold that must be met for disciplinary action is higher than if this was a company HR procedure. In Alistair Webster QC’s view, that threshold was unlikely to be met.
“While this process has not found to a criminal standard of proof that Lord Rennard acted with indecent intent, it is clear that he did not behave in the way that a chief executive should behave. Lord Rennard must reflect on his actions and apologise to the women involved.
“These allegations prompted the party to take a long, hard look in the mirror. The Liberal Democrats are, and must always be, a party where everyone is treated with respect.”
Update: Here’s Clegg’s statement: “People in positions of authority should never subject anyone to behaviour which is offensive or inappropriate. It is as simple as that. I want everyone to be treated with respect in the Liberal Democrats. That is why it is right that Chris Rennard has been asked in the report to apologise, to reflect on his behaviour and why he won’t be playing any role in my general election plans for the campaign in 2015.”
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