The Welsh political party Plaid Cymru has apologised after a damning report found a culture of sexual harassment, bullying and misogyny.
Victims have felt there was little point in reporting unacceptable behaviour by elected members because it had been tolerated for so long, the report said.
It went on to decry a lack of leadership, which it said meant the problems have worsened over the last few years, and made 82 recommendations needed to “detoxify” the party’s culture.
In a joint statement, the Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price and chair Marc Jones said: “It is clear that there are instances – both historically and in more recent times – whereby unacceptable behaviour has been allowed to take place or go unchallenged and that our processes and governance arrangements have been inadequate to address this.
“Individuals have been let down as a result – women especially, but also men. For that, on behalf of the collective leadership of Plaid Cymru, we are deeply sorry.”
The party’s national executive committee and Price commissioned the review, which was led by former Plaid Senedd member Nerys Evans, after concerns grew over how women were being treated and staff reported low morale.
Key findings of the Prosiect Pawb (Everyone’s Project) report include:
Plaid Cymru failed to implement a zero-tolerance approach to sexual harassment.
Staff reported bullying and discrimination in the workplace. But any staff do not feel that there are safe systems to raise concerns, seek support or challenge what they see. They have seen too many instances of bad behaviour by elected members be tolerated and feel that there is little point in raising concerns.
There has been a lack of collective leadership and governance across the party which has meant that these issues have worsened over the last few years.
Measures are needed to detoxify a culture of harassment, bullying and misogyny and to make Plaid truly and visibly welcoming to women.
The report adds: “Evidence from a recent anonymous survey of staff and elected members highlight cases of sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination. These are not isolated cases.
“In the vast majority of cases of sexual harassment or bullying, the victim did not report it or make a formal complaint. From the evidence we have, the discrimination faced is mostly gender based. Some staff members felt unable to complete the survey for fear of being identified.”
