Westminster bullying: 'Bigger and more explosive' new probe to be launched into harassment by politicians

Exclusive: 'New independent inquiry will provide us with a fuller picture of historical cases and contribute to the ongoing culture change we need to see in the parliament'

A new bullying inquiry into allegations of harassment and intimidation by MPs and peers is set to be “bigger and more explosive” than the landmark Cox report, The Independent understands.

Commons leader Andrea Leadsom is poised to launch a probe into complaints from aides employed directly by politicians, which is expected to attract hundreds of allegations from past and present staff.

It comes on the heels of a damning report by Dame Laura Cox, a former high court judge, which found an entrenched culture of harassment against apolitical parliamentary staffers, which included more than 200 allegations of groping, intimidation and sexual harassment.

Insiders are gearing up for more explosive revelations in the new inquiry, in which a senior QC will examine complaints from those employed directly by MPs, rather than the House of Commons.

The sexual harassment scandal that gripped Westminster last year highlighted how politicians run their offices like small businesses, creating a conflict of interest if employees want to complain about the MP’s behaviour.

Fresh details are due to emerge on Monday, when MPs will gather for a general debate on the findings from Dame Laura’s report.

A source close to the investigation told The Independent: “I expect this to be bigger and more explosive than the Cox report.

“Laura Cox revealed the shocking shortcomings in support for House staff, but we know there has been a similar problem for MPs’ staff, too, who have an entirely different employment arrangement.

“The new independent inquiry will provide us with a fuller picture of historical cases and contribute to the ongoing culture change we need to see in the parliament.”

The second investigation will mirror the Cox inquiry by calling for evidence from complainants and producing a report with a string of new recommendations in six months’ time.

“It is essential that lessons are learned from unacceptable behaviour, whenever it happened, so an independent inquiry will be established by the steering group to hear from those members, peers and their staff who have experienced bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct,” papers from the Commons Commission said.

Westminster was rocked by the scale of sexual harassment and bullying laid bare in the inquiry last month, which warned of an “urgent and serious problem” with abuse in parliament.

The report said a culture of “deference, subservience, acquiescence and silence” had allowed the mistreatment of staff to persist, and it was “difficult to envisage” that reforms could be delivered under the current administration.

Staff spoke of being groped and propositioned by male MPs and staff, or being ”treated like servants”, belittled and asked lewd questions about their sex lives.

The report said: “Some men who came forward spoke of witnessing ‘some atrocious treatment of young women by MPs’, and of ‘some women being treated as their personal servants, with veiled threats to have them moved if they failed to comply with requests’.”

Commons authorities accepted the report’s demands and backed calls for an independent body to investigate current and historic cases.

Speaker John Bercow was embroiled in the row amid calls for a “root and branch” revamp of Commons leadership.

Mr Bercow also came under intense scrutiny over personal allegations of bullying from senior parliamentary clerks, which he strongly denies.

He signalled that he would stand down next summer, with his intention to see out the Brexit process.

It comes after more than 80 former and current parliamentary staff signed an unprecedented letter demanding a complete overhaul of Commons procedures to curb the persistent abuse.

One former staffer, Lisette Whittaker, said “nothing was done” when she was attacked by an unnamed politician, who stalked her for years without being punished.

Ms Whittaker, who has since been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder, said she endured constant harassment from when she started working for the European Scrutiny Committee in 1993 when she was 19.

The Independent previously revealed that one in five people working in Westminster have experienced sexual harassment in the last 12 months, after a survey of all staff in parliament commissioned by Ms Leadsom.

Former defence secretary Sir Michael Fallon was forced to resign at the height of the scandal following allegations of sexual misconduct, while several Labour and Tory MPs were investigated by their parties.