Arts Council England seeks £40k from Mercury Prize winner Speech Debelle after tribunal loss

nme.com:

Mercury Prize winner Speech Debelle, following the musician losing an employment tribunal after bringing forward claims of racial discrimination.The singer rose to prominence in 2009 after she unexpectedly won the Mercury Prize award that year for her album ‘Speech Therapy’ – beating off competition from the likes of Florence + The Machines, The Horrors and Kasabian.Following the win, Debelle – real name Corynne Elliot – went on to work with ACE as a relationship manager for three years.

She left the job in September 2021, and brought a tribunal forward against the organisation last year, citing discrimination.According to the claims brought forward (via The Guardian), the musician accused the company of microaggressions, bullying and harassment during her time there, and stated that the work-related stress was what led to her departure.

ACE denied all accusations, and last October judges ruled in favour of Arts Council England.Now, following the judge’s ruling that Elliot had not faced direct or indirect race discrimination or race-related harassment, ACE have decided to take legal action to recover the money it spent during the case, a figure it estimates is £40,000.Both the rapper and her legal team could potentially be made to pay £20,000 each, although Debelle has accused the company of trying to punish her for taking legal action against them.“They want to make sure they send a message that the might of the organisation will be against you if you dare to stand up to them,” she claimed, also highlighting how the organisation has never attempted to seek out legal costs before.

She has also set up a crowdfunding campaign to cover her side of the costs, which, at time of writing has raised just under £1,000 of the.