Peer who faced allegations that he sexually harassed female activists refuses Nick Clegg's demands for direct apology
Lord Rennard warned that he may sue the Liberal Democrats after the party suspended him in the row over whether he had sexually harassed female activists.
The party's former chief executive reacted with anger after a disciplinary committee ruled his failure to apologise over the allegations may have brought the party into disrepute. Rennard complained that a "lynch mob mentality" had emerged among his colleagues.
In the first of two statements issued on Monday, the peer expressed regret for causing any upset, embarrassment or hurt to anyone – and also revealed he had considered self-harm, that he felt threatened and bullied during the inquiry last autumn and was feeling too ill to return to work in the House of Lords.
However, in an emotional appeal he refused to accede to Nick Clegg's demands for a direct apology to the four activists who have publicly made complaints about his behaviour. "Courtesy has always been an essential part of my moral compass," Rennard said. "If ever I have hurt, embarrassed or upset anyone, then it would never have been my intention and, of course, I regret that they may have felt any hurt, embarrassment or upset.
"But for the reasons given, I will not offer an apology to the four women complainants. I do not believe that people should be forced to say what they know they should not say, or do not mean."
Susan Gaszczak, a Lib Dem activist who has alleged she was inappropriately touched by Rennard, said the suspension was a "really strong first step" but she was upset by the tone of his statement.
"I've tried to read Rennard's 2,500-word statement and I'm horrified he thinks we're bullying him because we not. We're just seeking the truth to come out and for it to be apologised for," she told the Guardian.
She said: "I can't believe he's turning this into an 'I'm being bullied by this, I'm so depressed' thing. We've all been very badly affected. I personally have been very badly affected and have not coped at all well throughout all of this."
Gaszczak said she was upset that Rennard was trying to portray himself as "the big victim".
Rennard has steadfastly refused to say sorry for almost a week, following the publication of an inquiry by Alistair Webster QC into allegations the peer inappropriately touched some women. The review said there was no proof Rennard acted in an indecent way but he may have violated the personal space of some complainants.
In his account, Rennard said he felt like he had been subject to a "whispering campaign from those bearing personal grudges against me" in 2010 and a "smear campaign" in 2009 relating to his Lords expenses.
At the time of the 2010 general election campaign, Rennard revealed he had felt such a "depth of depression" that it had led to "consideration of self harm" that he said was difficult to describe.
When the allegations about harassment were first aired on Channel 4 last year, Rennard said he was "subjected to a humiliating trial by media and a 'lynch mob' mentality from some in the party who knew none of the facts".
His first statement also made several complaints about the way the Webster inquiry was conducted – but it was not until a second release issued by his spokesman in the early evening on Monday that he confirmed he might now sue. "In the light of the extraordinary decision by the English regional parties committee, Lord Rennard is having to take legal advice with a view to civil action against the party," the second statement said.
The decision to suspend Rennard, made by the party's English Regions Committee, was welcomed by some of the complainants, but at least one remains unhappy with the peer's failure to apologise.
Bridget Harris, a former adviser to Clegg, said she would be happy to accept an apology from the peer but also wanted a change in the culture of the party. "At the end of the day, what we are looking for is redress, and acknowledgment of his responsibility for his behaviour, and to send out a very strong message to women that they are welcome in the Lib Dems," she told Sky News.
Lynne Featherstone, a Lib Dem minister, also intervened in the row for the first time, saying she was extremely disappointed in the absence of an apology.
"Lord Rennard had every opportunity to provide whatever evidence he wanted to the inquiry led by independent QC Alistair Webster," she said.
"I do think you have to pay some respect to those independent findings and, quite frankly, an apology is the very least that should be delivered. I am very sorry for Chris [Rennard] personally. He is clearly in deep distress over this, but so are the women who have suffered over the years."
Many of Rennard's supporters expressed outrage about the decision to suspend the peer. Lord Greaves, a Lib Dem peer, said it was "sheer madness" that would prolong the bitterness and make divisions within the party worse.
Another senior Lib Dem peer told the Guardian he was feeling ill about the total failure of Clegg's leadership over the furore. "If Chris Rennard hadn't given his life to the party, many MPs and peers wouldn't be in the parliament and Nick Clegg wouldnt be deputy prime minister," he said.
Amid all the in-fighting, one Lib Dem MEP and supporter of Rennard managed to inflame the row further by appearing to minimise one of the women's complaints.
"This whole situation's been taken massively out of proportion," Chris Davies told the BBC. "There are people in the street at the moment, people watching this programme, people think Chris Rennard was some sort of sexual fiend like Jimmy Savile.
"I mean, the reality is, if Alex Carlile [Rennard's legal adviser] is correct, that one of the complaints is about a leg being touched through a trouser ... at a meeting six years ago, and you have to remember just what Chris Rennard has been put through – and his wife."
This prompted a furious response from Lady Hussein-Ece, the party's gender spokeswoman, who said she felt women were being demonised in the row.
"I don't know what planet he is on," she told the Huffington Post. "He should reflect on what he said. I think he should apologise. I think its outrageous that an MEP thinks a bit of leg-touching is OK, it's not OK. What sort of world is he living in? Is this sort of Benny Hill? Women being chased around the desk? He should apologise."
She added: "The Salem witch trials demonised women. That's what that was about. I can see an attempt to demonise women [here]."
Davies later apologised for being "crass".
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Lord Rennard threatens legal action over suspension by Lib Dems
Rowena Mason
Mon, 20 Jan 2014 20:43:56 GMT
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