Sex pest storm puts Clegg in crisis: 'Groping peer' suspended because he won't apologise vows to sue Lib Dems as party leader is accused of losing his grip

Lord Rennard suspended from party pending another investigation

Has refused to apologise to the four activists he is said to have harassed

Says he was the target of a 'lynch mob' and is considering legal action

Colleagues of Nick Clegg say affair has been handled 'very badly'



The Lib Dems descended into further chaos last night after the peer accused of being a sex pest threatened to sue the party.

The extraordinary move means Nick Clegg now faces the gravest crisis of his leadership, with colleagues openly saying the Lord Rennard affair has been disastrously mishandled.

The peer was finally suspended from the party yesterday pending another investigation.

But, in a 2,600-word statement, he again refused to apologise to the four party activists he is said to have harassed.

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Liberal Democrat peer Lord Rennard (left) has been suspended pending another investigation. Colleagues of party leader Nick Clegg (right) say the affair has been handled 'very badly'



He even suggested he was the target of a ‘lynch mob’ and was considering legal action against the Lib Dem leadership – a move likely to extend the saga until the general election next year.

Tim Farron, the Lib Dem president thought to be positioning to succeed Mr Clegg, said the party owed an apology both to Lord Rennard and to the women who complained about him.

‘I’m not here to say we’ve handled this well. We clearly haven’t,’ Mr Farron said.

Lord Greaves, a Lib Dem peer and ally of Lord Rennard, said the decision to suspend him was ‘sheer madness’ and the affair had spiralled into a crisis of leadership for Mr Clegg.

‘The party has handled it, in the last few days, very badly. Almost everything that has happened has made things worse,’ he added.

Tim Farron today said both the women who launched a complaint against Lord Rennard and the peer himself deserved an apology

‘It’s going to end up with bitterness and anger in the party that could set us back for a generation.’



The furore over the allegations against the peer, who as chief executive effectively ran the Lib Dem party machine for years, has plunged his party into a state of civil war.



And Mr Clegg – dubbed Calamity Clegg during a bitter leadership contest against Chris Huhne – faces the worst internal crisis since he took over in 2007. On a dramatic day:



Lord Rennard failed to make an expected show of defiance by taking his seat in the Lords, saying he was too ill to attend

Mr Clegg demanded the peer say sorry to the four women before he could return

A Lib Dem committee decided to suspend Lord Rennard after more than 50 complaints from party members

The peer issued a bizarre 2,600-word personal statement complaining Mr Clegg had not spoken to him for almost a year

Lib Dem MEP Chris Davies, another of the peer’s allies, was forced to apologise after saying Lord Rennard was ‘no Jimmy Savile’ and likening his behaviour to ‘an Italian pinching a woman’s bottom’

Lord Rennard resigned the party whip last year while claims that he had made unwanted sexual advances to four women and touched them inappropriately were investigated.



The allegations against the married peer, who has always denied behaving inappropriately, were investigated by senior barrister Alistair Webster QC, who concluded they could not be proved to a criminal standard of proof. But he also said the evidence of the women was ‘broadly credible’ and that the peer should apologise.

Lord Rennard was absent from the House of Lords, saying he was too ill to attend

The future of Lord Rennard has divided the Lib Dems, with his allies furiously attacking the leadership for refusing to back him and critics insisting Mr Clegg must act.

But his demands for an apology were ignored and yesterday the Deputy Prime Minister further angered some Lib Dem women by claiming that people on both sides of what he called a ‘debate’ were saying ‘quite shrill things’.



A party committee concluded the peer should be suspended pending a further inquiry into whether his refusal to say sorry had brought the party into disrepute.



Lord Rennard said he had felt ‘threatened and bullied by wild rumours, adding that the ‘depth of depression that I felt and the consideration of self harm is difficult to describe’. He pointed out that a police inquiry into the allegations had resulted in no further action. Lord Rennard said his legal advice had been that any apology to the complainants ‘would leave me defenceless in a future civil action’.



Lib Dem international development minister Lynne Featherstone said she was 'extremely disappointed' in the lack of apology

A spokesman for the peer said he was taking legal advice ‘with a view to civil action against the party’.



‘His membership of the party matters more to him than anything apart from family and friends.



Indeed he feels that the party is also his family,’ the spokesman added.



Lynne Featherstone, the Lib Dem international development minister, said: ‘I am extremely disappointed in the failure to apologise.



‘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 personally. He is clearly in deep distress over this, but so are the women who have suffered over the years. An apology is in order and I think this is the inevitable ending to a procedure that has been protracted and to some extent unnecessary.’



Lib Dem activist Charlotte Henry said the affair was ‘coming to resemble a horrible divorce’ which was ‘all avoidable’ if Lord Rennard had given a proper apology.



Naomi Smith, who is co-chairman of the Social Liberal Forum, a Liberal Democrat pressure group, said: ‘For liberals, equality and a rejection of abuses of power are fundamental principles.



‘In lieu of a clear strategy from the top, it has been the activists, rather than Nick Clegg, who have shown strong leadership and recourse to these values ... Nick Clegg had a duty to show moral leadership, but didn’t.’



I'M THE VICTIM OF A LYNCH MOB, HE INSISTS This is an edited version of the 2,600-word statement issued by Lord Rennard yesterday:

Lord Rennard: 'I will not offer an apology' It is impossible to describe how enormously distressed I am by this situation and I am certainly too ill to attend the House of Lords today.

In 2009, I was the subject of a smear campaign in relation to House of Lords allowances. I said that I would bring forward my planned resignation as the Liberal Democrat chief executive on health grounds. I worked for the party for 27 years, I helped it to recover from many crises. But the lifestyle involved did great damage to my health.

I was diagnosed as a diabetic in 1994, my control was very poor and by 2007 I was warned that I was entering a high risk zone for a stroke or heart attack.

It was clear to me then that the smear campaign was run by people with personal grudges against me. I was exonerated by the House of Lords.

During the 2010 election, I was again subjected to personal allegations. The depth of depression that I felt and the consideration of self harm is difficult to describe so I will not do so. I was assured by the party that nobody was making any complaints against me.

Shortly after Chris Huhne resigned, (February 2013) I was told that people from Channel 4 were investigating allegations against me. I was subjected to a humiliating trial by media and a ‘lynch mob’.

The only communication to me from the party was simply to send me a copy of a complaint form showing that two women were now seeking my expulsion from the party.

Whilst I was never arrested, I had to be interviewed under caution. I had to wait until late September when I was actually told by the BBC that there would be no charges.

I formally offered mediation in October 2013 as a route forward via the Independent Investigator. This was completely rejected by the ‘complainants’.

I then felt threatened and bullied by wild rumours that there were many people who would complain against me.

I was informed by Alistair Webster QC (the investigator) at 11am last Wednesday that the conclusion was ‘No Further Action’.

He went on to say I should consider an apology. My legal advice was that, apart from anything else, any apology would leave me defenceless in a future civil action. I very much regret the wounds that have opened up within my party because many people have acted without being aware of the facts.

Courtesy has always been an essential part of my moral compass. 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.

Half the men in the Lords have pinched a bottom, says the peer's pal

Lord Greaves said such behaviour 'used to be widespread'

Told BBC Radio 5 Live complaints were part of an 'extraordinary campaign'

Added a ‘mob was unleashed’ against Lord Rennard

BY GERRI PEEV



Lord Greaves said 'A mob was unleashed' at Lord Rennard

Half of all male members of the House of Lords have pinched a woman’s bottom at some time in their lives, a Liberal Democrat peer has claimed.



Lord Greaves, a friend of Lord Rennard’s, said such behaviour ‘used to be widespread’.



Calling for a South African-style truth and reconciliation commission to end what had become a civil war, he said that the alleged victims should declare whether they would accept an apology.



In an on-air confrontation with one of the women who alleged that Lord Rennard had harassed her, the Lib Dem accused Bridget Harris and other complainants of being part of an ‘extraordinary campaign’.



Lord Greaves said a ‘mob was unleashed’ against Lord Rennard over the weekend and told Miss Harris to stop ‘ranting on’ and to allow him to speak.



He told BBC Radio 5 Live that many peers had been academics and professionals in positions of power who had younger women working with them.



‘I’m sure that at least half of the members of the House of Lords have pinched a woman’s bottom – unacceptable – at some time in their lives.’ Lord Greaves added that he hoped such behaviour was no longer widespread and that he was not trying to justify it.



‘I don’t think they do it now, half of them are past it and too old and doddery,’ he added, in remarks that will annoy many peers.



He condemned the decision to suspend Lord Rennard as madness, saying: ‘The party is at civil war now and the chasm is getting wider by the day.



‘The decision today to suspend his membership makes matters worse, it’s just chucking fuel on the flames. All we’ve got is one half chucking grenades at the other half and we’re getting nowhere. It destroys the party.’



Lib Dem MEP Chris Davies infuriated others in the party on Sunday when he took to the airwaves to play down the claims against Lord Rennard. Mr Davies, who has been friends with the peer for 36 years, told BBC’s Westminster Hour: ‘This isn’t Jimmy Savile. This is touching someone’s leg six years ago at a meeting through clothing. This is the equivalent of a few years ago an Italian man pinching a woman’s bottom.



‘How much more must this man be made to suffer through the media condemnation that comes out day after day fed by the party leadership?’ He added: ‘The whole thing has become like the Salem witch trials.’



But last night, Mr Davies apologised for his remarks, saying he had been calling for a sense of proportion after his wife was asked by a neighbour whether Lord Rennard had been accused of raping someone.



‘My remarks about Italians pinching a woman’s bottom were crass and I apologise. They were spur of the moment words made during an...interview as I tried to explain that the accusations against Chris Rennard needed to be put into proportion.



‘It happened also that my wife had just told me that she had been asked by a neighbour whether Chris had raped someone.



‘Chris Rennard has been my friend for 36 years and I can see the pain he is going through and I reacted as a friend. I hope that matters can be settled by him and the complainants civilly and without a further media feeding frenzy.’ His apology came after the Lib Dems’ gender and equality spokesman, Baroness Hussein-Ece, called his remarks ‘outrageous’, adding she did not know ‘what planet he is on’.

Bridget Harris, one of the women who has made claims against the peer

She said: ‘I think it’s 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.’



But Mr Davies’s comments about women being touched were emphatically backed last night by his wife, Carol. She said Lord Rennard’s accusers were grown women and should have dealt with it if they felt uncomfortable because of his behaviour.



And she said that when she was younger she once hit a man in the face after he jokingly slapped her on the bottom. Mrs Davies, a drama teacher, denied her husband’s comment implied it was fine for a man to touch a woman.



Mrs Davies said: ‘He wasn’t saying that at all. What he was saying was that the whole thing was disproportionate.



‘He said the accusations were not of a sexual nature. It’s ridiculous. If somebody touches your leg, you ask them to move their hand or you move your knee. I mean, how old are these women? They’re not 12.’

Alleged victim Alison Smith said the peer trapped her and a friend in a room and wouldn't let her leave

QUENTIN LETTS: A Rennard-sized crater had been left by his absence





The peer did not take his seat in the Lords today and instead released a 2,600-word statement

To the House of Lords hoping to catch a glimpse of in-the-news Lord Rennard, the Lib Dem former election strategist who denies groping some of his party’s blushing lovelies (Shirley Williams appears to have escaped intact, thank goodness).



Wherizee? The Upper House’s press gallery, normally lightly attended, was nearly full.

News bulletins, feverish about this odd tale of denied pudgy-palm paddling, had assured us that M’Lud Rennard would be ‘taking his seat’. The very word ‘seat’ seemed fraught with difficulty.



What the bulletins meant was ‘Rennard will be turning up to claim his three hundred quid daily bung for attending the unelected, unreformed, increasingly threadbare Upper House’.



In a coordinated operation, lensmen and TV camera crews waited outside the main entrances to the Palace of Westminster. All approaches were covered. Gosh it was exciting. Stakeout!



The Lords day begins with prayers, from which the media are always excluded. Normally this irks me – might some journalists not like to offer up a supplication to the Almighty? – but yesterday it was just as well.



Our greedy curiosity would have jarred with the duty bishop’s recitation from the Book of Common Prayer.



Prayers ended and journalists bounded into the gallery like Grand National runners approaching the first fence. Your sketchwriter was up there in the cavalry charge, folks, and the Aintree mud was flying.



I managed to grab a good little eyrie right over the Lib Dem benches. And Lord Rennard was not there. Oh.



Was the career luncher detained over his jam roly-poly and custard in the peers’ subsidised dining room? He was not. The embattled/beleaguered/troubled/persecuted Rennard was at that very moment releasing a statement, some 2,500 words long, in which he stated his distress and shock at the way his case has been handled by his party.



He also noted, with pleasure, the role he played in the House of Lords recently when he helped block parliamentary-boundary changes which would have made constituencies more evenly sized (a democratic outrage which will probably cost the Tories 20 seats in the next general election).



The grotesqueness of unelected Lib Dems doing that in the undemocratic Chamber they claim to hate was rum as a Caribbean punch.



' Was the career luncher detained over his jam roly-poly and custard in the peers’ subsidised dining room? He was not'

Lord Rennard normally sits right at the back of the House. That position was yesterday occupied by a lady in a powder-blue suit – Lady Doocey. Her main claim to fame was that she was Vince Cable’s election agent.



At this point, ex-Labour MP Lord Hoyle was making some rhubarbish point about ‘the waters of Gibraltar’.



Old Doug is known to like Gib’, but few of us previously had him down as having much interest in its waters.



While we sat there, staring at the Rennard-sized crater his absence had created, word came that he was to be hauled before some Lib Dem inquisition, possibly on charges of bringing the party into disrepute.



Now disrepute is relative. It is easy to blot the name of a convocation of saints, but harder to bring into disrepute, say, a sodality of pickpockets. Has Rennard made the ghastly Lib Dems look worse?



He has possibly done the already grottified House of Lords a disservice, mind you – simply by drawing fresh attention to a House which has drifted so far from the dignity and restraint of old days.

How low its debates have fallen. The place has been stuffed with some appalling political specimens.



Yesterday Lord Foulkes (Lab) rose to make another of his loaded points. Several people just laughed at him.



This is a Lords which contains the likes of Quentin Davies (ex Tory MP who defected to Gordon Brown’s Government for a ministerial job – and a peerage?); hellbent Europhile ex-diplomats such as Lord Hannay (Crossbencher); ex local-government Tory and jailbird Lord Hanningfield; Peter Mandelson’s bag-carrier Lord Liddle (Lab).



One minister at the despatch box yesterday was Lord Newby, former press officer to Paddy Ashdown and ‘chief of staff’ to Charlie Kennedy. Do they mean bottle opener?



