Insurers Aviva Plc and Phoenix Group Holdings Plc have canceled their memberships of the Confederation of British Industry as the lobby group fights for survival following a number of allegations of sexual assault among its staff.
(Bloomberg) — Insurers Aviva Plc and Phoenix Group Holdings Plc have canceled their memberships of the Confederation of British Industry as the lobby group fights for survival following a number of allegations of sexual assault among its staff.
Aviva said the CBI was no longer able to represent corporate Britain “in light of the very serious allegations made,” and the group’s “handling of the process and response.” A spokesperson for Phoenix said later on Friday morning that it had resigned its membership “with immediate effect.”
Aviva and Phoenix are the first major UK companies to publicly quit the CBI, which now faces an existential crisis as companies review their memberships. The insurers’ decisions followed a report in the Guardian involving allegations of a second case of rape at the business group.
The CBI is one of the UK’s best-known lobby groups, with a strong record of influencing government policy. It claims to speak for 190,000 companies in the UK which it also represents at events across the world.
The scandal began last month when CBI boss Tony Danker stepped aside pending an investigation into alleged inappropriate behavior toward his colleagues. The organization subsequently faced separate allegations of sexual assault said to have occurred prior to Danker’s reign, including from a woman who said she was raped during a CBI boat party on the Thames. Danker was fired last week.
Read More: Sacked CBI Boss Danker Says He’s the Fall Guy After Sex Scandal
Supermarket Asda also said Friday that it has “decided to pause” any engagement with the group while investigations take place.
The CBI said the latest allegations were “abhorrent,” and its “hearts go out to any women who have been victims of the behavior described.”
Brian McBride, the CBI’s president, said it was liaising with police. However, he said the group was not previously aware of the latest rape claim and added that “the CBI does not recognize many of the most serious elements of the Guardian story relating to harassment.”
Read More: Scandal at CBI Plunges UK Business Lobby Into Existential Crisis
The CBI said it was anticipating a further report into sexual misconduct in its workplace from the law firm Fox Williams later Friday, and would provide an update next week.
Last week, the British Insurance Brokers’ Association said it had canceled its membership.
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