CBI chief sets out ‘ts ‘most grievous error’ in sexual misconduct scandal
The president of the scandal-hit CBI has admitted he does not know if the business lobby group can win back trust while setting out a series of shortcomings at the organisation.
Brian McBride made his remark in an open letter to members that confirmed “a number of people” had been dismissed following the series of sexual misconduct allegations and outlined how staff had been failed.
He set out its response to the findings of a review, conducted by a law firm, into its handling of the affair and governance at the CBI.
Lawyers at Fox Williams said there were a few instances that the senior leadership had awareness of allegations made prior to their publication by the Guardian newspaper.
These included, the law firm found, a member of the CBI executive committee being aware of a complaint about the behaviour of a board member, which was raised with him directly.
Brian McBride has been president of the CBI for 10 months
No other board member was aware of the complaint at the time, it stated.
Mr McBride admitted the CBI’s “most grievous” error was “trying to find resolution in sexual harassment cases when we should have removed those offenders from our business”.
He wrote: “We didn’t put in place sufficient preventative measures to protect our people from those seeking to cause harm and we didn’t react properly when issues arose as a result.
“We failed to filter out culturally toxic people during the hiring process.
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Tony Danker was sacked on 11 April and told the BBC he felt he had been made the ‘fall guy’
“We failed to conduct proper cultural onboarding of staff. Some of our managers were promoted too quickly without the necessary prior and ongoing training to protect our cultural values, and to properly react when those values were violated.
“In assessing performance, we paid more attention to competence than to behaviour. Our HR function was not represented at board level, which reduced escalation paths to senior levels of the company when these were most needed.”
The law firm made several recommendations, including the appointment of a chief people officer to the board.
The CBI suspended all membership and policy activity on Friday after dozens of major members either suspended collaboration with the group, or quit.
The trigger for the exodus was an allegation of rape made by a second female worker, published that day by the Guardian.
Those to quit the CBI included NatWest, Aviva and the John Lewis Partnership – all led by women.
Read more:
Once-distinguished and influential CBI has seen its reputation reduced to rubble
Which business have quit or suspended membership of the CBI?
The extent of the challenges facing the CBI – and damage done to its reputation – has led commentators to question whether it has a future as a standalone force for UK businesses.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt piled more pressure on the beleaguered lobby group on Monday when he declared there was “no point” in engaging with the CBI during the crisis, adding that business needed a strong, representative voice at the table.
Business
Energy bills to rise again from January but spring falls to come, research firm Cornwall Insight forecasts
Energy bills are to rise again next year, according to a respected forecaster.
Costs from January to March are projected to rise another 1% to £1,736 a year for the average user, according to research firm Cornwall Insight.
The energy price cap, which sets a limit on how much companies can charge per unit of electricity, is also expected to rise, costing typical households an extra £19 a year.
It’s a further increase after energy costs rose 10% from October.
After the latest hike, there were hopes of a fall in the new year, but volatile wholesale gas and electricity markets are still above historic average costs.
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Prices have gone up due to supply concerns arising from Russia‘s war in Ukraine, and maintenance of Norwegian gas infrastructure.
But spring is expected to herald a reduction as is October 2025, Cornwall Insight said.
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‘Energy prices make me depressed’, pensioner Roy Roots said in August
Every three months energy regulator Ofgem revises the cap based on wholesale costs.
The official January price cap announcement will be made on Friday.
It comes as millions of pensioners lost their automatic winter fuel allowance payment after the government means-tested the benefit.
Meanwhile, Cornwall Insight’s principal consultant Dr Craig Lowrey warned “millions” of households won’t heat their homes to “recommended temperatures, risking serious health consequences” with bills on the rise.
“With it being widely accepted that high prices are here to stay, we need to see action,” he said, suggesting options like cheaper rates for low-income homes, benefit restructuring, or other targeted support for the vulnerable “must be seriously considered”.
The energy price cap system is being reviewed by Ofgem with possible changes to the standing charge coming over the next year.
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The long-lasting solution to high energy bills is the transition to UK-produced renewable power, the firm said.
“While there will be upfront costs, this shift is essential to building a sustainable and secure energy system for the future.”
The owners of Scotland’s only oil refinery have rejected a US-led approach about a possible bid for it months before its scheduled closure.
Sky News has learnt that a consortium said to be led by Robert McKee, an American energy industry veteran, wrote to Petroineos, the owner of the Grangemouth site, to express an interest in buying it.
The approach, which is understood to have been made earlier this month, was rejected by Petroineos, which is 50%-owned by the petrochemicals empire founded by the Manchester United FC shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
The consortium is understood to comprise The Canal Group, which is reportedly developing a green energy refinery in Texas, and Trading Stack, a Middle East-based commodities trader.
Mr McKee spent nearly four decades with ConocoPhillips, one of the biggest energy companies in the US.
Sources close to the situation said that Petroineos had rebuffed the offer in order to concentrate on a publicly announced plan to transform the century-old plant into a finished fuels import terminal.
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They added that the nature of the consortium’s approach had raised questions about its access to financing and expertise in operating an asset of this kind.
The Grangemouth refinery, which employs about 450 people, loses about £200m annually.
Its other shareholder is the state-backed Chinese energy giant PetroChina.
The site is due to close next year.
A person close to the consortium insisted that its financing was robust and said it would assess the feasibility of building a new refinery elsewhere in the area.
They added that the consortium had had “positive interactions” with trade union officials, and believed that there was scope to rapidly make Grangemouth’s refinery operations profitable.
On Monday, a spokesman for Petroineos said: “Since the Petroineos joint venture was formed 13 years ago, our shareholders have invested nearly £1bn in the refinery, only to absorb losses of £600m.
“Last week, the refinery lost £385,000 on average each day and we expect to lose more than £150m in total during the course of this year.
“We have not received any credible or viable bids for the refinery.”
A spokesman for the consortium declined to comment.
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