Stormont urges anyone subjected to abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Jeffrey Donaldson to come forward

Former MP, convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Donaldson

Anyone who directly experienced abuse or inappropriate behaviour by convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Donaldson while he was an MLA or a visitor to Parliament Buildings is being urged to come forward as Stormont launches a formal review into his conduct.

The review, which opened today, Friday 10 July, follows Donaldson’s conviction for rape, indecent assault and gross indecency against two women when they were children.

It comes after Assembly Speaker Edwin Poots publicly revealed that concerns about Donaldson’s behaviour had been raised with him during the 2021 DUP leadership contest, prompting days of political scrutiny over what was known and how it was handled.

Current and former MLAs, Assembly and political party staff, officials and anyone else who used Parliament Buildings during Donaldson’s time there are now being invited to report any abuse or inappropriate behaviour they directly experienced.

The review will remain open until 21 August.

Review will examine Donaldson’s time at Parliament Buildings

The Assembly’s review will examine any abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Donaldson while he served as an MLA between 2003 and 2010 and during the years he continued to visit Parliament Buildings as an MP.

It will be led by the Assembly’s Director of Parliamentary Services, who also serves as the Senior Assembly Safeguarding Officer, with guidance from experts in trauma-informed practice.

Its terms of reference include establishing whether the Assembly Commission already holds any relevant information, providing a safe process for people to come forward, identifying any matters that should be referred to the PSNI or other statutory agencies, and considering whether Assembly policies or procedures should be strengthened.

Anyone wishing to contact the review can do so by emailing donaldsonreview@niassembly.gov.uk. People may also report concerns directly to the PSNI.

A report will be presented to the Assembly’s Clerk and Chief Executive by 28 August.

Poots’ disclosure sparked the review

The review was commissioned after an extraordinary statement by Speaker Edwin Poots in the Assembly chamber on 29 June.

Mr Poots revealed that, while he and Donaldson were competing for the DUP leadership in 2021, a party colleague informed him that a young adult woman had reported receiving unwanted attention from Donaldson.

He said the woman had been offered support to make complaints through a number of channels but declined to pursue the matter.

Addressing MLAs, Mr Poots said:

“Nothing of a criminal or safeguarding nature was raised.”

However, he added that the incident, together with accounts since made public, convinced him that anyone connected with Parliament Buildings who may have had similar experiences should have an opportunity to come forward.

He told the Assembly:

“Donaldson behaved inappropriately to that person — I understand that that has happened to other people, given the ‘Spotlight’ interviews — so I want to open this up to ensure that people, should they have experienced inappropriate behaviour from that source as Members or as members of staff, have the opportunity to have it addressed.”

Mr Poots also called on the Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service and House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to carry out similar reviews covering Donaldson’s time as a junior minister and as an MP at Westminster.

He said:

“We do not know the extent of his activity.”

MLAs pressed Speaker over his actions

Mr Poots’ statement prompted sustained questioning from MLAs, particularly the SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole, who sought assurances about how concerns raised in 2021 had been handled and whether further accountability was needed.

Mr O’Toole asked whether the Speaker would provide a fuller written explanation of the decisions taken at the time to help restore public confidence.

Mr Poots insisted he had no safeguarding or criminal information to act upon and said the PSNI had already examined the matter as part of its wider Donaldson investigation.

He maintained that the woman involved had made clear she did not want the issue taken further.

“The individual merely wanted us to know how he had behaved because she did not want him to be the leader of unionism,” he told the Assembly.

“That is what she requested — nothing more, and nothing less.”

Sinn Féin MLAs repeatedly questioned whether Mr Poots should step aside entirely from matters connected to Donaldson, while Alliance MLA Paula Bradshaw called for safeguarding training for MLAs to be revisited.

Mr Poots confirmed he would not adjudicate on matters relating to Donaldson but rejected suggestions that he had failed to act appropriately.

“I have nothing to answer for,” he said.

“If I had any authority from someone to act on their behalf, I would do it immediately, irrespective of the consequences.”

Later in the exchanges, Mr Poots described Donaldson as “the criminal — the paedophile — Jeffrey Donaldson”, telling MLAs the review was intended to allow anyone connected with Parliament Buildings who may have experienced abuse or inappropriate behaviour to report it safely.

Assembly seeks information while review is under way

The Assembly has said it will not comment further while the review remains open in order to protect the integrity of the process and out of respect for anyone who may still be considering whether to come forward.

Information submitted to the review will be handled in accordance with the Assembly Commission’s legal obligations on confidentiality, data protection and information governance.

For anyone affected, the reporting window remains open until 21 August, after which the findings will be considered by the Clerk and Chief Executive, including whether any issues should be referred for further investigation or whether changes to Assembly safeguarding policies are needed.