CBI boss Tony Danker sacked after misconduct claims

Confederation of British Industry chief Tony Danker has been dismissed with immediate effect after allegations about his conduct at the influential lobby group.

The news of his dismissal comes after broader allegations of sexual misconduct at by senior figures at the organisation. The CBI stressed that Danker was not the subject of these complaints.

Law firm Fox Williams was hired to look into the claims against Danker after the Guardian newspaper reported on a formal complaint that was made in January, as well a number of alleged informal reports of concerns over his behaviour.

"Tony Danker is dismissed with immediate effect following the independent investigation into specific complaints of workplace misconduct against him," the CBI said in a statement on Tuesday. He is to be replaced by Rain Newton-Smith who recently left the group as chief economist.

"The board wishes to make clear he is not the subject of any of the more recent allegations in The Guardian but has determined that his own conduct fell short of that expected of the director general."

In response Danker said on social media that he was "shocked to learn this morning that I had been dismissed from the CBI, instead of being invited to put my position forward as was originally confirmed".

"I recognise that I unintentionally made a number of colleagues feel uncomfortable and I am truly sorry about that. I want to wish my former CBI colleagues every success.

The CBI has suspended all public events and government departments have also put their engagement with the group on hold. It normally has direct access to the corridors of power, including Downing Street, the office of the prime minister.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com