Husband of slain British MP Jo Cox accused of sexual misconduct

Brendan Cox, the widower of slain British MP Jo Cox, has stepped down from two charities set up in her memory over claims of sexual misconduct.

Brendan Cox, widower of murdered British MP Jo Cox, has attacked the PM over his comments.

Brendan Cox, widower of murdered British MP Jo Cox, has attacked the PM over his comments. Source: AAP

The widower of a slain British MP has stepped down from two charities set up in his late wife's memory after a newspaper reported allegations of past sexual misconduct against him.

Brendan Cox said late on Saturday he had acted inappropriately and would leave his positions at the Jo Cox Foundation and the More in Common charity.

Both were started after a far-right extremist fatally shot and stabbed MP Jo Cox just before the 2016 Brexit referendum.

Mr Cox said he wanted to apologise "deeply and unreservedly" for his past behaviour while working at another charity.

"I do acknowledge and understand that during my time at Save the Children I made mistakes and behaved in a way that caused some women hurt and offence," Mr Cox said in a statement.



He promised to hold himself to "much higher standards" in the future.

The allegations against Mr Cox surfaced last week in Britain's Mail on Sunday.

He called the newspaper's reports a "massive exaggeration" but admitted making mistakes.

On Sunday, the paper published what it said was a tearful interview with Mr Cox in which he expressed remorse about his behaviour.

Charities in the UK have been under increased scrutiny in recent weeks following allegations reported by the Times of London that senior staff from British aid organisation Oxfam used prostitutes and downloaded pornography while working in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake.

Ms Cox's family offered support for Mr Cox, praising him on Sunday for taking responsibility for prior misdeeds.

Her sister, Kim Leadbeater, said Mr Cox "did the right thing" by admitting inappropriate behaviour.

"As a family we will support Brendan as he endeavours to do the right thing by admitting mistakes he may have made in the past, and we respect him for doing so," she said.

"We all make mistakes. Brendan is a wonderful father and I have no doubt about the happiness he brought to Jo."

Mr Cox has campaigned publicly for causes his wife supported since her death.

She was a Labour Party MP opposed to Brexit who was killed by a far-right extremist now serving a life sentence for murder.


Share
2 min read

Published

Updated



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
Husband of slain British MP Jo Cox accused of sexual misconduct | SBS News