The CBI had a really good culture, insists ex-boss Dame Carolyn Fairbairn

Former CBI boss Dame Carolyn Fairbairn says the lobby group, which is facing a series of sexual allegations, had a “really good culture.”

Fairbairn, who led the Confederation of British Industry for five years until October 2020, said it had been an “incredibly difficult and distressing time” following revelations about the treatment of some women.

These include allegations of rape at the CBI’s 2019 summer party and inappropriate comments made to female staff members.

“I persist and believe it was a very good culture… far from a toxic culture,” she told The Sunday Times. “This is about men behaving badly towards women.”

Speaking of the rape allegation, she added: “I do not accept this connection between the culture of the organization I founded and the actions of an individual.”

Separately, her successor Tony Danker was fired in March for allegedly viewing staff Instagram accounts and taking junior employees to lunch. He said his dismissal was unfair.

He was replaced by former CBI chief economist Rain Newton-Smith, who has vowed to change the culture.