Labour MPs angry over handling of harassment hearing

Labour MPs have reacted with anger after a female activist who has accused the MP Kelvin Hopkins of harassment said he had been given permission to cross-examine her in written questions at a disciplinary hearing.

Ava Etemadzadeh, treasurer of the Young Fabians, said the Luton North MP would not be in the same room but would be able to submit questions to her at the hearing of Labour’s national constitutional committee, which has the power to expel him from the party.

The Labour MP Jess Phillips threatened to cut up her party membership card over the issue.

Etemadzadeh has accused Hopkins of sending her a text saying young men would be “lucky to have you as a girlfriend and a lover … Were I to be young … but I am not.” She also accused the MP of rubbing his crotch against her during an embrace at an event in 2014.

Hopkins, who has been suspended from the party, admits texting Etemadzadeh but has said he “absolutely and categorically” denies any inappropriate conduct.

Labour had said the pair would not meet face-to-face. However, Etemadzadeh said the party initially proposed setting up an audio link for Hopkins to question her. In an email setting out the process, a Labour officer told her: “The complainants will not be in the same room, but there will be an opportunity for Kelvin to put questions to the complainants.”

A further email said she “will not meet the respondent face-to-face and will not be in the same room as him at any point”.

It said: “We are currently in the process of developing the hearing stage to ensure it is suitable and as sensitive as possible. It is likely the best was to facilitate this kind of hearing will be through an audio link, this would ensure the hearing could be completed within one day while still ensuring both you and the respondent were kept separately.”

Etemadzadeh said she had made it clear she would not accept a hearing if Hopkins was permitted to put questions to her directly. “It is hard even to be in the same building, even if it’s not the same room. It really stresses me out. Initially, I thought it would be on different days and I was already very stressed,” she told the Guardian.

Labour said Etemadzadeh would not be directly questioned by Hopkins. “The process does not allow respondents to respond directly to complainants. The party takes all complaints of harassment extremely seriously,” a spokesperson said.

The Labour MP Kerry McCarthy, who has accused Hopkins of sending her inappropriate messages over a period spanning 20 years, said there had been unacceptable delays to the process. Both she and Etemadzadeh said they had not yet been given a date by the disciplinary body.

“It’s frustrating that it’s taken so long and we absolutely need clarity,” she said. “The party needs robust systems in place for dealing with these things and they need to take advice from people who are used to doing that.”

Phillips was among those to raise concerns about the process but said she had been reassured that the two would not be in the same room. However, she said there were “still serious questions to ask and so I will”.

Sarah Champion, Labour’s former women and equalities spokeswoman, also tweeted her anger.

John Mann, another Labour MP who has been outspoken about the party’s processes to deal with sexual harassment complaints, said the proposal was “clueless, valueless – a most appalling decision. Who made this? Why? With what authority?”