Debbie Abrahams blasts Corbyn office as she stands aside over bullying claims
2 min read
Debbie Abrahams has launched an extraordinary attack on Jeremy Corbyn's office after being forced to step aside as Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary over claims she bullied members of her staff.
Ms Abrahams - who denies the allegations against her - said "certain individuals" in the Labour leader's office had been "aggressive, intimidating and wholly unprofessional" towards her over the past 10 months.
She added that her "treatment in the last week has shown a bullying culture of the worst kind" and said she would be making a formal complaint to both the Labour party and the parliamentary authorities.
In a statement, Labour said: "Debbie Abrahams has stood aside from her frontbench role while the Labour party investigates an employment issue.
"Margaret Greenwood will act up as Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions during this period."
It is understood that the party acted after receiving a number of complaints about Ms Abrahams, who has been Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary since 2016.
But speaking to the Daily Mirror, Ms Abrahams said she had been left in the dark about the allegations against her, and had not agreed to stand down from her role.
She said: "I refute the allegations that have been made against me in the strongest possible terms. I will fight this spurious claim and do not rule out taking legal action.
"I have had no details about the complaint, who it is from, the process or timescales. I have not agreed to stand aside.
"My treatment by certain individuals in the Leader's office over the last 10 months has been aggressive, intimidating and wholly unprofessional.
"My treatment in the last week has shown a bullying culture of the worst kind. As such I am making a formal complaint to both the Labour Party and parliamentary authorities."
The row follows a series of allegations of bullying against MPs, including Commons Speaker John Bercow.
Speaking at the Scottish Labour conference in Dundee on Friday, Mr Corbyn said: "The culture of bullying is totally wrong in any workplace or any environment’ the Labour leader told reporters at Scottish Labour’s conference in Dundee.
"It’s nasty, it’s horrible to the individual victim concerned. It's an abuse of power by the manager or employer."
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