The director general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has been sacked after an investigation into allegations of misconduct.
Tony Danker, who joined the industry body as director general in November 2020, faced a series of complaints from current and former CBI employees in recent weeks amid claims of serious misconduct.
In a statement today, CBI said Danker had been “dismissed with immediate effect”. The move comes after the industry lobby group commissioned an independent investigation following allegations made in early March.
This investigation, conducted by employment law firm Fox Williams, uncovered “serious failings” throughout the organisation.
“The allegations that have been made over recent weeks about the CBI have been devastating,” the statement said. “We apologise to the victims of this organisational failure, including those impacted by the revulsion we have all felt at hearing their stories. Nobody should feel unsafe in their workplace.”
Three other employees have been suspended pending further investigation into separate allegations, the CBI said.
The industry body added that while Fox Williams continues its investigation, it is “liaising with the police and has made clear its intention to cooperate fully with any police investigations”.
CBI misconduct allegations
Earlier this month, an exposé by the Guardian revealed that more than a dozen women claimed to have been victims of “various forms of sexual misconduct” by senior figures at the industry lobby group.
The CBI represents thousands of UK companies spanning a range of sectors, and is one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the country.
The complainants, all of whom were current or former staff, approached the publication with reports of what they described as a “toxic culture at Britain’s most influential business lobbying organisation”.
These complaints came after the Guardian revealed separate allegations made against Danker, one of which the publication said was “defined as sexual harassment”.
The report from the Guardian prompted Danker to step down from his role and led the lobby group to cancel all of its external events last week as the investigation escalated.
In its statement today, the CBI said that Danker’s dismissal was due to “specific complaints of workplace misconduct”.
“The Board wishes to make clear he is not the subject of any of the more recent allegations in the Guardian but has determined that his own conduct fell short of that expected of director general,” the statement added.
New director general announced
Following Danker’s dismissal, the CBI revealed that it has appointed former CBI chief economist Rain Newton-Smith as director general.
The industry group also revealed it will conduct a thorough review of organisational processes and workplace culture in the wake of the incident.
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Jill Ader, a CBI board member and senior adviser, will oversee a “root-and-branch” review of the organisation's culture, governance, and processes.
“The review will draw on practice in best-in-class organisations addressing culture change as well as underlying processes such as routes for raising concerns, investigations, escalation protocols, and responsibilities,” CBI said in its statement.
“It will begin with a listening exercise among CBI colleagues and input from our members and stakeholders to understand what needs to be changed and improved, and how we learn the lessons from what has happened in recent years.”
