I was very sad to hear of the departure of Louise Ellman from the Labour Party last week. I have known Louise for many years from my time working in Toxteth and building up an Immigration and Asylum team. Louise has assisted many of our clients who have needed a nudge from a minister, to get a sensible view of their case when the immigration rules have come up with a sub-optimal answer. Likewise, we have helped Louise in cases where she has been asked for assistance by her constituents. She is a committed MP who continues to serve with distinction in the House of Commons. She was a highly regarded Chair of the Transport Committee and she is Labour through and through.

Her reason for leaving is more than sad. Like Luciana Berger, she has been subjected to bullying and anti-semitism in Liverpool and beyond. Something she has put up with for a very long time. The Labour leader has seemed incapable of tackling this serious and insidious threat form inside his own party. Whilst Alastair Campbell was removed overnight for a comment made on television, those accused of being anti-semitic seem to be allowed to continue in the party for years. It is a sad indictment of our current political system, that those who put their heads above the parapet are subjected to abuse. What's worse, is that this abuse often seems to go unchecked. 

Racism and bullying seem to be on the rise in society. It now seems normal to hurl abuse at someone who does not share our view of the world, however narrow that view might be. As any teacher will tell you, zero tolerance of unacceptable behaviour in the classroom when it first appears is the way to keep order. Let one thing go and you set a precedent. Sadly, our MPs seem to be the of abuse, and even death threats, on a regular and consistent basis.

Particularly, it seems, if they are women. If this is not tackled at the source, then it is hard to see who will come forward to undertake vital political roles in our society. If this is combined with a racial dimension, then we are in very dangerous territory indeed. 

Our lawyers can also be subject to bullying by clients, or the family of clients, who do not receive the advice or outcome they had expected. They are sometimes subjected to torrents of abuse or unacceptable behaviour when they're just trying to do their jobs. I run a training course on dealing with difficult clients where I set out how we should deal with unacceptable behaviour. 

My approach is not that different from the classroom teacher. It is for the lawyer to set out the limits regarding what is acceptable behaviour from a client. My advice is that at the first sign of trouble, the terms of engagement are set our clearly, and in writing. If that is not respected, then it is time to issue a final warning that the retainer will be terminated if the behaviour continues.

We have ceased to act for clients in the past. None of us come into work to put up with abuse.

The same is true of racism in sport. It's not just a problem in Bulgaria. At the first sign of unacceptable behaviour we need to act, and act decisively. The match in Sofia was extremely unpleasant and it is now up to the local authorities to deal with the problem to show that racism will never be tolerated. 

Leaders have a particular responsibility to set the tone for the organisation they lead. They have to act decisively to stamp out unacceptable and racist conduct. If they fail to do so, then the consequences are serious for us all. We are beginning to understand that the well-ordered society in which we live is not as secure as we may have imagined.