Review of Alleged Abuse or Inappropriate Behaviour Associated with Jeffrey Donaldson in Parliament Buildings
Following the conviction of Jeffrey Donaldson with rape, indecent assault and gross indecency against two women when they were children, and the fact that Jeffrey Donaldson was a Member of the Assembly from 2003 to 2010 and a visitor to Parliament Buildings as an MP, on 29 June the Speaker asked the Clerk/Chief Executive of the Assembly to conduct a Review.
The Speaker’s remarks can be found here.
The Clerk/Chief Executive has now considered the Speaker’s request and put in place arrangements to conduct a Review of any abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Jeffrey Donaldson during the periods above.
The Review will be conducted by the Director of Parliamentary Services (Senior Assembly Safeguarding Officer), guided by experts in trauma-informed practices, and reported directly to the Clerk/Chief Executive.
The purpose of the Review is to enable any Member or former Member, current or former Assembly or party staff, or other user of Parliament Buildings to bring forward, in a safe and supported manner, any incidents of abuse or inappropriate behaviour they directly experienced while Jeffrey Donaldson was a Member of the Assembly or visitor to Parliament Buildings.
If any Member or official, or other user of Parliament Buildings, past or present has directly experienced abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Jeffrey Donaldson, they should report this to either the PSNI or the Review at:
The Review will be carried out promptly, from 10 July – 21 August for any concerns to be raised, with a Report provided to the Clerk / Chief Executive by 28 August.
All information received in the course of this Review will be processed in accordance with the Assembly Commission’s legal obligations relating to data protection, confidentiality, records management and information governance.
Terms of Reference of the Review
The review should:
- Establish if the Assembly Commission holds any relevant information on abuse or inappropriate behaviour while Jeffrey Donaldson was a Member of the Assembly from 2003 to 2010, or while he was a visitor to Parliament Buildings as an MP.
- Communicate and provide an appropriate process to enable any Member or former Member, current or former Assembly or party staff, or other user of Parliament Buildings to bring forward any incidents of abuse or inappropriate behaviour they directly experienced while Jeffrey Donaldson was a Member of the Assembly from 2003 to 2010 or a visitor to Parliament Buildings as an MP.
- Inform Members or former Members, current or former Assembly or party staff, or other user of Parliament Buildings of the support service available for anyone who reports having been subject to abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Jeffrey Donaldson.
- Draw to the Clerk/Chief Executive’s attention any matters that may require further appropriate investigation or referral to the PSNI or other statutory agencies.
- Indicate whether any of the issues considered have implications for any Assembly Commission policies or procedures.
- Consider the extent to which the review findings or a summary thereof can be published.
