A senior Labour MP has dropped out of a Confederation of British Industry (CBI) event after the organisation was embroiled in fresh allegations of serious sexual assault and drug use among its staff.
Lisa Nandy was due to be the key speaker at the political engagement dinner on April 25, in which guests would be able to “pose burning questions” directly to the shadow secretary of state for levelling up.
An advert for the event, which was still live on the CBI’s website onTuesday morning, states: “The Labour party is eager to engage with business leaders to help inform its manifesto and programme for potentially becoming the next government.
“This dinner aims to bring together Lisa Nandy, the Labour team supporting her, and business leaders to discuss how we can create a regionally thriving economy.”
But Ms Nandy’s office confirmed that she would not be attending in light of fresh allegations.
More than a dozen women have now reportedly come forward about the behaviour of senior staff members at the lobby group, which represents many of Britain’s biggest companies and campaigns on behalf of some 190,000 businesses.
One woman alleged she was raped at a staff party on a boat on the River Thames in 2019, the Guardian reported.
Another complained about an attempted sexual assault by a manager at the same event.
Other allegations include senior staff behaving inappropriately towards female colleagues and widespread drug use at CBI events.
Mr Danker has previously apologised for any offence he had caused and said it was “completely unintentional”.
The CBI said it has launched an independent investigation into the allegations.
A spokesman said it takes “all matters of workplace conduct with the utmost seriousness, which is why, earlier this month, we commissioned a thorough investigation by an independent law firm into all recent allegations that have been put to us.
“We will not hesitate to take any necessary action when the investigation concludes.”
