Ɖ Obzrvr vy on ɖ toxic wrcples ɖt z Wsminstr
(Transcription of a Guardian editorial of 13 Nov. 2022)
Bŭliyñ z rîf in parḷmnt n MPz śd b ɖ last ppl t cndon it
Súnde 13 Nvmbr 2022
‘A starc rmîndr v hǎ bad ʈñz yst t b” z hǎ Lora Cox dscrîbd parḷmnt in hr indipndnt rvy v bŭliyñ n haṛsmnt in Wsminstr. Ś faund evidns v a toxic wrcñculćr, wɖ sm MPz bhevñ in apōlñ wez t jūńr stāf.
Ɖt wz in 2018. Sins ɖen, an indipndnt inqîri hz faund ɖt Jon Brco, hu ẃl Comnz spīcr hd oṿol rsponsbiḷti fr parḷmntri culćr, wz a “sirịl bŭli” n a layr. It cncludd ɖt hiz conduct twdz stāf wz so apōlñ h wd hv bn sspndd fṛm ɖ Comnz hd h stl bn an MP. Alix Aḷn, ɖ formr indipndnt advîzr on miṇstirịl standdz, in 2020 faund ɖt ɖ formr homsecṛtri Priti Ptél hd bŭlid sivl srvnts. Aḷn lêtr rzînd ẃn ɖ ɖen prîm̦inistr, Boris Jonsn, dfndd hr n asrtd ś hd nt brocn ɖ miṇstirịl cod.
Ńmṛs aḷgeśnz v bŭliyñ hv srfist ɖs munʈ in rleśn t Gavin Wiłmsn: fṛm ɖ formr ćīf ẃip – t hūm h snt xplītiv-lêdn meṣjz – fṛm a fīmel parḷmntri colīg n fṛm a sivl srvnt hu hz akzd him, amñ uɖr ʈñz, v telñ him t “slit hiz ʈrot”. Ɖs wīcend, it hz imrjd ɖt sīńr sivl srvnts at ɖ Miṇstri v Justis wr ofrd ɖ oṗtyṇti t swić rǒlz t avôd wrcñ wɖ Doṃnic Rāb aftr Riśi Sūnac ri’pôntd him az justișecṛtri. N evidns hz bn sbmitd t yt anɖr parḷmntri bŭliyñ inqîri – ɖ ʈrd in jst fîv yirz – ɖt hîlîts ɖt in a srve v 600 stāf, a qortr sd ɖe hd xpirịnst or witnist bŭliyñ.
Mć hz bn ritn abt ẃ parḷmnt apirz so pmisiv t toxic bhevyr bî a mnoṛti v MPz. Ɖ Comnz hz bn lîcnd t 650 litl fīfdmz, ć wɖ a smōl grūp v stāf ansṛbl t a MP, ẃć mcs stāf rluctnt t cōl ǎt n rport bad bhevyr. Ɖ goṣpi culćr mīnz ɖe fir biyñ tard az “dificlt” f ɖe cmplen, mcñ it hard fr ɖm t gt jobz in ɖ fyćr. Ɖ culćr v lêt-nît wrcñ n soṣ́lîzñ cn wìcn ɖ bǎnḍriz btwn pṛfeśnl n prsnl rleśnśps.
MPz hv traid t adres ɖs bî istabliśñ an indipndnt cmplents-n-grīvns proses fr stāf hu hv xpirịnst bŭliyñ n haṛsmnt. Bt ɖr z a criticl factr ɖt hz nt ćenjd a bit in ɖ yirz sins Cox’z rvy. Culćr z set bî ɖoz wɖ pǎr at ɖ top v a wrcples. N ɖr r far tù mni ministrz n sīńr MPz hu mc xksz fr un’xptbl bhevyr bî ɖer p’liticl alîz.
Jonsn apôntd Cris Pinćr ćīf ẃip dspt biyñ md awer v forml cmplents ɖt alejd h sx̣́li haṛst tū men ẃl h wz a ministr at ɖ Foṛn Ofis. Sīńr Cnsrṿtiv MPz argyd ɖt ɖr wr “baḷnsñ rqîrmnts” ɖt mitgetd Ptél’z bŭliyñ bhevyr. Crispin Blunt MP dfndd formr parḷmnterịn Imran Ahmad Cān aftr h wz cnvictd v ćîld sx́l asōlt. Sūnac hd rportidli bn md awer ɖt ɖr wr sirịs aḷgeśnz abt Wiłmsn’z conduct.
It z nt jst a Cnsrṿtiv probḷm: ɖ sīńr Lebr MP Marġrit Becit in 2018 sd in rleśn t Brco’z bŭliyñ: “Ɖ consttyśnl fyćr v ɖs cuntri… trumps bad bhevyr.”
So loñ az sm parḷmnterịnz rmen hapi t trn ɖer fesz awe fṛm evidns v bŭliyñ n haṛsmnt, fr rīznz v p’liticl xpīdịns, nʈñ wl ćenj. Ɖ Hǎs v Comnz n Ẃîthōl wl cntiny t harbr bhevyr ɖt śd nvr b toḷretd in ɖ modn wrcples, wɖ teribl consiqnsz fr ɖ ppl hu wrc ɖr.
