Independent Expert Panel upholds appeal by John Nicolson MP against bullying and harassment complaint

• The Conduct of John Nicolson MP HC 1561

This followed a complaint from the Rt Hon Nadine Dorries MP relating to Mr Nicolson’s behaviour and Twitter activity after an evidence session held with the Digital, Media, Culture and Sport Committee when Ms Dorries was the Secretary of State in November 2021.   

Complaints made under Parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) of sexual misconduct, bullying or harassment against MPs are investigated by an independent investigator appointed by the ICGS, who makes recommendations to the Commissioner. The Commissioner then decides based on the investigator’s report and recommendations whether to uphold the complaint. That decision can be appealed to the IEP. 

The IEP sub-panel that considered Mr Nicolson’s appeal found that his actions could not properly be shown to have breached the Bullying and Harassment Policy because the Commissioner did not: 

• Fully take into account that Parliament must not have intended the Policy to prevent vigorous opposition to the Government. The sub-panel said they did not intend “to say that behaviour in the course of political opposition is without limits. [But] that the Policy on bullying must not be interpreted so as to conflict with legitimate political activity.” 
• Consider the complainant’s own record of tweeting which was relevant to whether it was reasonable for her to have perceived Mr Nicolson’s conduct as bullying. 
• Consider the sequence of events leading up to the complaint, and evidence on that may have shed a light on the reaction the complainant had to Mr Nicolson’s tweets and whether that reaction was reasonable.  

The sub-panel therefore set aside the Commissioner’s decision to uphold the complaint.  

In its decision the sub-panel stressed: 

This is a very unusual case under the Bullying and Harassment Policy. The complainant and the respondent have had no private relationship. […] The complaints arose entirely from their relationship as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and spokesperson on that portfolio for the Scottish National Party, respectively. 

Similar behaviour between MPs and staff members, or between MPs in different circumstances, might be breaches of the Bullying and Harassment Policy. Anyone who experiences behaviour not in line with the Parliamentary behaviour code will have their case considered on its own individual merits. 

The fact of the complaint is public knowledge. Therefore, the IEP’s decision on the appeal has been published. The IEP would not normally publish a report on a successful appeal by an MP if the confidentiality of the process had been respected.

About the Independent Expert Panel

The Independent Expert Panel (IEP) hears appeals against decisions made by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (the Commissioner) in cases involving an allegation against an MP, or former MP, of bullying, harassment, or sexual misconduct under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), and also determines sanctions where such complaints are upheld, including in cases such as this one referred to it by the Commissioner.

The IEP was established by the House of Commons on 23 June 2020.