Philip Green identified as leader accused of sexual harassment

Philip Green has been named as a businessman at the center of allegations of violence revealed by the UK's Daily Telegraph, making Britain's most prominent billionaire retailer involved in global opposition to sexual harassment .

The name of Sir Philip was made public when Peter Hain, former Labor MP and Cabinet Minister, identified the president of the Arcadia group in Parliament after the Court of Appeal prevented the Telegraph from revealing his identity.

Lord Hain said that he felt "obliged" to use his parliamentary privilege to name the tycoon, whose empire includes the Topshop fashion chain.

According to the Interim Appointment against the Telegraph, five employees of Sir Philip's companies have made allegations of "improper conduct" against him, including sexual harassment and racial abuse reported by the newspaper.

Sir Philip issued a statement in which he stated that he had "categorically and completely" denied any allegations of "illegal sexual or racist behavior".

"Arcadia and I take the accusations and grievances of employees very seriously. If any of these complaints are raised, a thorough investigation is ongoing, "said Sir Philip, adding that such complaints were not uncommon in large corporations.

"In some cases, these are settled with the agreement of all parties and their legal advisers," he added. "These regulations are confidential, so I can not say more."

The innovative "cheap chic" has long been a controversial figure in British business circles, most recently after the collapse of BHS, the chain of big box stores that made it to become a billionaire.

He was criticized for letting the chain fade in the years following the loss of several hundred million pounds of dividends. The subsequent demise of BHS cost 11,000 jobs and triggered a pension crisis that he eventually had to shell out for £ 363 million.

The new allegations immediately led to the demand that Sir Philip be stripped of his knighthood.

"He narrowly escaped victory and was lucky enough to lose his title of knight of the pension scandal," said Vincent Cable, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party and former secretary of state for business. "If these allegations are correct, he should certainly be stripped of his knighthood."

Lord Hain told the House of Lords that he had been contacted by "a person intimately involved in the case", which had prevented the Telegraph from reporting the allegations because the "powerful man of the" "had used" confidentiality agreements and substantial payments to conceal his allegations ". the truth about serious and repeated sexual harassment, racist abuse and bullying that continue compulsively ".

Lord Hain, who sat in the cabinets of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, added that he felt the disclosure was "clearly in the public interest".

Sir Philip has spent nearly £ 500,000 in legal fees in an attempt to injunction the Telegraph, the newspaper reported. In an email to staff, Robert Winnett, deputy editor of the Telegraph, said the newspaper was still "subject to an injunction," which means it's unlikely to be able to publish the details. allegations.

"[P]Be careful not to go beyond reports of what Lord Hain said in Parliament or what we report in our newspaper / online, "read Mr. Winnett's e-mail, accessed by the Financial Times.

The Court of Appeal had ruled that the "substantial payments" made in the context of settlement agreements had "compromised" the accounts of the five employees leveling the charges against Sir Philip. The regulations also contained non-disclosure agreements.

Jess Phillips, a Labor MP who has emerged as the chief critic of the use of NOA to quell accusations of harassment, praised Lord Hain's decision to appoint the Executive Defendant.

"I'm not surprised that a man with such a terrible reputation in all respects also has a disregard for his employees," Ms. Philips told the FT. His power and money only bought him for a few moments and I am happy that wealth is not a free exit card from prison. "

DNAs have been criticized for being used by the rich and powerful to silence victims of sexual harassment. On Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May said it was "clear" that some employers were using them "unethically".

Maria Miller, Conservative Member of Parliament and Chair of the House of Commons Women's and Equal Opportunities Committee, said, "Given Philip Green's great influence in the business world, it is surprising that appeal decided that it was not in the public interest the chain of payments that were made.

"It is unacceptable that the current system allows the use of NDAs to conceal serial offenders and that this can not continue."