A complaint has been filed by Labour staff into Sue Gray’s handling of a leak inquiry about a scrapped flagship pledge to spend £28billion a year on the green transition.
An insider report said party officials were denied due process surrounding the internal investigation.
Labour officials claimed to have had their phones inspected and had their workplace rights violated during the course of an internal investigation.
It has been reported that some of those who were told to turn over their phones were senior members of party leader Kier Starmer’s team and others were said to have been left "in tears" by her alleged heavy-handedness, according to The Times.
Sue Gray and Kier Starmer
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It follows a leak of a story that had appeared in The Guardian and correctly predicted a U-turn on Labour’s £28billion green investment pledge.
It is not clear whether a specific leaker has been identified or whether Gray has evidence of any unauthorised disclosure to begin with.
Gray is said to have inspected the phones of staff and spoken to several during interviews without trade union representation present, reports The Times.
She was also reportedly in the parliamentary meeting from which details were leaked, prompting allegations of a conflict of interest and suspicion that her allies may have been responsible.
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Former civil servant and partygate investigator Sue Gray
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The Labour Party branch of the GMB union has reportedly submitted a formal complaint about Gray’s investigation to the party’s general secretary, David Evans. It later sent an all-staff email reminding employees of their rights during a workplace investigation.
A party spokesman said he did not comment on disciplinary matters, but a source confirmed that "there was an investigation last week", which spoke to a number of members of staff. It is not clear whether Starmer, who is intensely frustrated by leaks to the media and negative briefing between his staff, authorised or was made aware of the inquiry.
Gray is the former official best known publicly for leading an inquiry into lockdown-breaking gatherings in No10.
Staff based at Labour HQ in Victoria have been pitted against senior members of Starmer’s private office in Westminster.
It comes amid a challenging week for Kier Starmer and the Labour Party, as he faces criticism for delaying the suspension of his candidate for the Rochdale by-election.
Meanwhile, former Hyndburn MP Graham Jones has been administratively suspended from the party - pending investigation after allegedly referring to "f***ing Israel" at a meeting of activists.
Jones, a former Labour MP who lost his seat in 2019, is seeking to stand again for the Labour Party.