The Liberal Democrats have suspended Lord Rennard from the party and removed his whip in the House of Lords whilst launching a fresh inquiry into sexual harassment claims.
Its decision was taken following new legal guidance, which indicated that the original 2013 inquiry into the accusations was “flawed”.
Four women originally made allegations against the peer, which he strongly denies, who formally served as Lib Dem chief executive and was granted a life peerage in 1999.
A party spokeswoman confirmed: “(Lord) Rennard has had the Liberal Democrat whip in the House of Lords and his party membership suspended, and the party is conducting a new investigation into these allegations.
“The party has now received legal advice that the 2013 investigation into allegations against Rennard was flawed in several respects.”
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has stated his view that Lord Rennard, now 65, should no longer be a member of the Lords.
“Ed Davey has made clear he believes Rennard should not be a member of the House of Lords and that it should be made easier for peers to be expelled from the Lords for serious misconduct,” the party spokeswoman said.
He had previously been vocal in demanding that Labour peer Lord Mandelson be stripped of his peerage over connections to Jeffrey Epstein.
Four women originally made allegations against the peer, which he strongly denies
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Sir Ed is understood to have been contacted this week by one of the alleged victims and urged to apply similar standards to Lord Rennard, The Telegraph reported.
Three of the original complainants have welcomed the party’s action as a positive development.
Former deputy party chair Alison Goldsworthy, academic Alison Smith, and Bridget Harris, who previously served as an adviser to former Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, released a joint statement following the announcement.
“We decided to speak out in 2013 so that future generations of women could participate in politics safely,” they said.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has stated his view that Lord Rennard should no longer be a member of the Lords
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“We did not expect a fair investigation to take so long and hope that the next steps will finally put the matter to rest.”
The fourth woman who made allegations, former councillor Susan Gaszczak, left the Liberal Democrats in 2014 following the initial investigation.
Lord Rennard continues to strongly deny the claims against him, pointing to multiple previous investigations that cleared him of misconduct.
He told GB News: “All allegations made against me were investigated by the Metropolitan Police Service in 2013 in what was acknowledged by one of the complainants to be a ‘thorough and professional investigation’.
“After interviewing all concerned and considering any evidence, they decided not to send a file to the Crown Prosecution Service and took no further action.”
Lord Rennard noted that barrister Alistair Webster KC subsequently examined the claims and “concluded that there was insufficient evidence to hold a disciplinary hearing” in December 2013.
“The report he submitted did not include the word ‘credible’. His report was accepted by the relevant party body in January 2014,” Lord Rennard added.
In 2014, a separate legal review into whether any grounds existed for disciplinary proceedings.
Lord Rennard continues to strongly deny the claims against him, pointing to multiple previous investigations that cleared him of misconduct
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Baroness Morrissey concluded there were no such grounds, with the Lib Dems accepting this finding in August 2014.
She said: “The process over the past nearly two years – conducted according to the prevailing rules – has run its course and although the outcome is a source of great frustration to some, I believe that the Party can only move on if that outcome is accepted.
“At this stage, given that the Party applied its own processes, there is no justification for it remaining ambivalent towards Lord Rennard – he should be just as welcome a participant or guest at Party events as any other.”
Lord Rennard will now sit as an independent in the upper chamber.
GB News has approached the peer for further information.