Baroness faces suspension over offensive racial remark

A baroness who called a adjacent of Indian root "Lord Poppadom" is facing a suspension from the House of Lords aft an probe recovered her comments amounted to harassment.

The Lords' Conduct Committee has recommended suspending Conservative Baroness Meyer for three-weeks implicit her comments, which amounted to harassment "related to race".

Lady Meyer was besides rebuked for touching the hairsbreadth of a achromatic MP without permission.

She initially denied making the comments but aboriginal apologised for some incidents.

The committee besides recommended suspending Lord Stone of Blackheath, a erstwhile Labour peer, for six months implicit bullying aft calling information unit "thick" and "stupid".

The committee upheld a ailment that Lady Meyer doubly utilized the derogatory word to notation to Lord Dholakia during a taxi thrust during a sojourn to Rwanda with parliament's Joint Committee connected Human Rights successful February.

The comments came aft Lady Meyer had earlier mistaken him for Lord Popat, different adjacent of southeast Asian heritage, the study heard.

Lord Dholakia was not present, but others connected the committee confronted her implicit the remarks including Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy, the study heard.

Lady Meyer initially denied utilizing the term, but faced with grounds from 2 witnesses she admitted she whitethorn person said it - blaming a agelong time and a meal wherever she drank "possibly 3 glasses of wine".

The probe recovered Lady Meyer had breached harassment rules with behaviour towards Lord Dholakia that had a "racial element".

She past asked Ribeiro-Addy if she could interaction her braids, and did truthful earlier receiving a reply.

Ribeiro-Addy said she laughed disconnected the incidental but said it made her consciousness "extremely uncomfortable".

Lady Meyer said she saw Ribeiro-Addy's absorption and instantly regretted her actions.

The study noted that she had apologised for her actions successful some cases.

Alongside the three-week suspension, the committee recommended Lady Meyer beryllium made to instrumentality bespoke behaviour training.

The 71-year-old co-founded International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children and is the widow of the erstwhile UK ambassador to the US Sir Christopher Meyer.

She was appointed to the location of Lords by Boris Johnson successful 2018.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said: "Baroness Meyer has apologised for the distress caused to the complainants.

"The committee has recommended what they see to beryllium the due sanction."

Conservative adjacent Lord Greenhalgh said helium was "surprised and disappointed" by Lady Meyer's comments.

"The usage of that benignant of connection is not what I would person expected from my blimpish colleague," helium told the BBC.

After a abstracted probe the committee has besides called for Lord Stone to beryllium suspended for six months aft uncovering helium had bullied parliamentary information staff.

The erstwhile Marks and Spencer enforcement admitted to utilizing an "aggressive" code erstwhile contacted by information unit aft leaving his suitcase unattended by an entranceway to the parliamentary estate, contrary to the rules.

The study said: "In consequent exchanges with information officers, connected the telephone and successful person, Lord Stone raised his voice, gesticulated, spoke implicit them and described (an officer) arsenic 'thick and stupid'."

He refused to determination his suitcase and utilized rude and violative language.

Lord Stone appealed against an archetypal probe by the Lords' Standards Commissioner that recovered helium had bullied the staff, but the Conduct Committee upheld the findings.

He had antecedently been recovered to person sexually harassed unit by the Commissioner successful 2019, starring to him losing the Labour whip.

After 2 allegations against him were upheld, helium agreed to instrumentality portion successful a people of "bespoke grooming and behaviour coaching sessions".

In Thursday's report, the committee said: "The contiguous lawsuit demonstrates that the wide signifier of Lord Stone's mediocre behaviour continues.

"Despite the anticipation we expressed successful 2020, Lord Stone appears to person nary greater penetration into his behaviour present than helium did then.

"His continued inability to power his behaviour and to dainty unit with respect and courtesy is unacceptable."

Peers request to o.k. the authorisation earlier it tin beryllium implemented, with a ballot to bash truthful expected aboriginal successful 2025.