It is no secret that complaint systems within political parties are broken and fail those who report an issue. I have spent much of my six years as a think tank Director looking into the mishandled party complaints and what can be done to fix our system.
These complaint systems exist within political parties to deal with issues ranging from smaller issues all the way to serious issues, including harassment, bullying and sexual assault.
Functioning complaint systems can block individuals who pose a real risk to others from accessing vulnerable people within a political party. For party members, how well complaint systems work has a very real impact on their own safety.
There is also a much wider public interest in these systems working. Party members include those who knock on our doors during election campaigns, the politicians who stand to represent us, and the more than one million people who belong to political parties. It is hard to overstate the impact this has on the quality of the politicians we vote for and trust in political parties, which act as gatekeepers to public office.
The public only sees these systems when they fail to act in a highly publicised scandal, without seeing their enormous influence behind the scenes.
Despite all of this, these systems have been broken. They lack independence, do not have the resources they need, are not trauma-informed, and we have even heard claims of interference from the party itself.
A broken system
To understand how these systems are broken, I spoke with individuals from a range of parties who have seen them firsthand.
Chloé Hawryluk is a Green Party Councillor and sexual harassment activist. She told me about her time as a Labour Party member and the lack of independence within complaints systems. Chloé said that “In terms of sexual harassment, I have seen positions of power play a role in complaints not being taken seriously or in threatening behaviour that stops the complaint going through in the first place.”
This highlights a serious issue in which those in positions of power can cause a matter not to be taken seriously within a party, raising serious questions about the independence of complaint systems. Yet all complaints staff are on their payroll; they write the procedures the volunteers within the system are often party members. This lack of separation means party issues, such as power imbalances within a party, can impact complaints.
There are also real problems in how complaints are dealt with. Former Interim CEO of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Emma Walker, spoke about the lack of a trauma-informed system and detailed failures to tackle bullying, assault, abuse, and complaints being ignored. Emma also said a senior member of the complaints team within the party, “He was the one who kicked my complaint out and told me that men can touch me however they want.”
Another issue with internal party systems is that complaints may not be dealt with within a reasonable time frame. A consistently fast system is incredibly difficult with volunteer-run systems constrained by party funding.
A former Conservative Party Member discussed these issues and told me that, “In 2019, I made a sexual harassment complaint to the party about a Conservative councillor. I received an acknowledgement of the complaint, but then had no response for over a year. The party only reached back out to me after I had participated, along with others, in an interview with the BBC in which we expressed our concern with the party’s complaints process.”
Delays such as this mean both sides of a complaint are left in limbo. Acting on complaints keeps people safe, ensuring those who are a danger to others are not allowed in spaces where they may be a danger to those who are vulnerable.
Another problem is that issues in party complaints procedures can allow individuals in senior positions to remain within a party, with access to vulnerable and young people.
Finally, we must ensure that those who have complaints or whose complaints have been mishandled can speak openly about their experiences. One of the main challenges here is Non-Disclosure Agreements.
A former Liberal Democrat staff member spoke to me about the use of Non-Disclosure Agreements, saying, “During my time with the Liberal Democrats, I witnessed and experienced practices that conflicted with both the party’s values and equality principles in general. Whistleblowing in this context was fraught with challenges. There were no clear processes, and volunteer-led committees often delayed progress. Pressure from above to retract my concerns was intense and framed as a threat to the party’s reputation. While I eventually moved forward, lifelong Non-Disclosure Agreements prevented me from talking about the details, and I faced career repercussions in a narrow field due to unfavourable references.”
Emma Walker also told me how even those who have not signed Non-Disclosure Agreements can be silenced. She said that they used legal pressure and potential career consequences to deter people from raising concerns in public or within the party.
Complaint systems are broken in almost every sense. They lack independence, are slow to act, are mishandled, and parties can prevent people from openly discussing issues.
A better system
We need to create a better system for dealing with complaints within political parties, which is independent, trauma-informed, and properly resourced. This is why we are proposing an ombudsman to handle complaints within political parties.
The new ombudsman would need to be separate and independent of both party politics and government. The best model to base a new system on would be the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), an independent body which is arm’s length from the government and deals with complaints around information and data sharing.
The new system also needs to be properly resourced with clear information on timelines for complaints, so that issues can be tackled promptly. A funding source that is shielded from funding cuts means both complaints are dealt with on time, but it also protects the independence of the new body. One option would be a small levy on political party donations to fund the service or a ringfenced fund from general taxation.
With consistent funding, there is also the opportunity to do what parties struggle to do: build expertise over the years. A new system could place experts at the heart of the process, ensuring the process is trauma-informed and involves trained safeguarding professionals working within the system.
A new system should also learn from the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), which deals with wrongdoing within Parliament. However, the body is limited to dealing with issues within Parliament. In one case, a front-bench MP was accused of assault and reported to the ICGS, but no action could be taken as the incident occurred outside Parliament.
This is an issue that requires government intervention. Our current system is designed so that elections and campaigning compete with complaint systems for limited resources, and smaller parties may struggle to establish procedures at all. This is a problem that will not be solved by political parties alone.
Policy proposals
It is time for an independent complaints system and an end to the misuse of non-disclosure agreements. Political parties should never be responsible for investigating themselves. An independent, trauma-informed and properly resourced complaints system would make politics safer for members, strengthen public trust, and ensure complaints are handled properly.
Director and Founder
Torrin is the Founder and Director of Centre Think Tank. His experience includes authoring over a dozen papers and over one hundred policies. His policies have been backed by an All-Party Parliamentary Group of over 260 MPs and included in various party manifestos. He has appeared in a wide range of print and broadcast media and previously had a weekly column for a national publication. He has a degree in Political Studies from Aberystwyth University.
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