Peer faces record suspension from House of Lords for sexual harassment

The senior peer Lord Lester of Herne Hill is facing a record suspension from the House of Lords after he was found to have sexually harassed a woman in the course of his parliamentary duties.

The Lords Privileges and Conduct Committee recommended he should be suspended until June 2022 after offering the complainant “corrupt inducements” to sleep with him.

Peers are expect to vote on Thursday whether to accept the committee’s recommended punishment, which would be the longest suspension in modern parliamentary history.

It follows an investigation by the Lords Commissioner for Standards Lucy Scott-Moncrieff after the woman – who has not been identified – complained the peer had breached the Lord’s Code of Conduct.

In its report the committee said: “We endorse the conclusion of the commissioner that in respect of that conduct Lord Lester of Herne Hill breached provisions of the code in failing to act on his personal honour by sexually harassing the complainant and offering her corrupt inducements to sleep with him.”