A Tory peer is facing suspension from the House of Lords for calling a British-Asian peer “Lord Poppadom” and touching an MP’s braids without permission.
Baroness Catherine Meyer, 71, is accused of referring to Lord Dholakia as “Lord Poppadom” twice during a taxi ride whilst visiting Rwanda as a member of the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR).
It is on the same visit that the Baroness is said to have complimented the hair of Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy before touching it without permission.
Lady Meyer originally labelled the “Lord Poppadom” accusations as “baseless” and “unfounded”.
But following evidence by two witnesses, Lady Meyer conceded that the incident did happen after a dinner where she had consumed “possibly three or four glasses of wine.”
Lady Meyer has not contested the incident with Ms Ribeiro-Addy and is believed to have said immediately after: “Oh gosh, I did the wrong thing,” once she noticed the MP’s body language.
Ms Ribeiro said the incident made her feel “extremely uncomfortable” as she added that the incident would never have been committed by a black woman against a white woman.
She said: “When you’ve seen it explained to people in the past why it’s offensive to touch black people’s – black women in particular – hair … I don’t have the right to protest because I’m seen as being rude or difficult, and it’s just not for me to have an issue with it … to me, it’s definitely a micro-aggression.”
The widow of former US ambassador Sir Christopher Meyer said she had intended the action as a friendly gesture and claimed that she was “entirely unaware” it would not be welcomed according to a report.
Lord Dholakia, who was also a member of the JCHR said he felt “shocked” and “very uncomfortable” after being informed of the remarks and stated that he could no longer continue to serve on the committee.
The complaints committee which investigated the incident said that as there was no misuse or abuse of power, the behaviour did not constitute bullying but stated that as it was unwanted and impacted Lord Dholakia, it classed as harassment related to race.
Ms Ribiero-Addy said of the incident in a letter: “With every week and every request to just write my complaint I grew angrier and more distressed about the situation.
“Unable to put the complaint into words without becoming very upset.”
The committee found that the incident of touching the MP’s hair without her permission classed as harassment but acknowledged that Lady Meyer had shown remorse, acted without malicious intent and displayed a willingness to apologise for her actions.
The committee therefore recommended she be suspended from the House of Lords for three weeks due to the racial element of the first incident, and “bespoke behaviour training” for both incidents.
