In letter to Boris Johnson, Chris Pincher said he
‘drank far too much’ and apologised to ‘those concerned’.
Tory deputy chief whip resigns after ‘drunkenly
groping two men’
Chris Pincher’s resignation is latest in a series of
allegations of sexual misconduct by Conservative MPs
Jessica
Elgot, Rowena Mason and Aubrey Allegretti
Thu 30 Jun
2022 21.51 BST
The
Conservative deputy chief whip has resigned after admitting he had “embarrassed
myself and other people” following reports that he drunkenly groped two men at
a private club.
Chris
Pincher wrote to Boris Johnson saying he was standing down after drinking too
much. However, he did not address the allegations that he was reported to the
whips by Conservative MPs who had witnessed his behaviour towards two men at
the Carlton Club in Piccadilly.
It is the
latest in a series of allegations of sexual misconduct by Tory MPs and will put
further pressure on Boris Johnson to clean up the culture in Westminster. It is
also the second time that Pincher has resigned from the whips’ office following
allegations made against him, raising questions about Johnson’s judgment in
promoting him to a role in charge of MP discipline and pastoral affairs.
In a letter
to the prime minister, Pincher said: “Last night I drank far too much. I’ve
embarrassed myself and other people which is the last thing I want to do and
for that I apologise to you and to those concerned.
“I think
the right thing to do in the circumstances is for me to resign as deputy chief
whip. I owe it to you and the people I’ve caused upset to, to do this.”
In the
short letter, which did not address the complaints about his sexual conduct,
first reported in the Sun, Pincher added: “I want to assure you that you will
continue to have my full support from the back benches … It has been the honour
of my life to have served in Her Majesty’s Government.”
The
government had no comment on the allegations about his behaviour but he is not
thought to be losing the Conservative whip after taking the decision to step
down. Pincher has not issued any comment on the allegations of groping two men.
An MP
present at the Carlton Club on Wednesday night said Pincher was asked to leave
by several people and was so drunk “he could barely stand up”.
The victims
were said to be two staffers, and multiple MPs who witnessed the alleged
groping messaged chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris to demand a meeting after the
incident.
One of
those who reported Pincher was fellow whip Sarah Dines, two sources said.
The MP for
Tamworth previously stood down from the whips’ office in 2017 after he was
reported by the Mail on Sunday as making an unwanted pass at the former Olympic
rower and Conservative activist Alex Story. The alleged incident reportedly
took place with Pincher dressed in a bathrobe at his London home.
He was
later cleared in a Conservative party investigation. At the time, a party
spokesperson said: “Following an investigation, a panel headed by an
independent QC considered the evidence and has concluded there has not been a
breach of the code of conduct.”
There was
disquiet among some Tory MPs that Pincher had resigned rather than been sacked,
and had been allowed to keep the Conservative whip. “That’s not going to last,”
one MP predicted.
Another
said Pincher had only been given his role because of his loyalty helping run
Johnson’s “shadow whipping operation” in the spring to shore up support.
They added
that Johnson’s judgment had been shown to be catastrophic and that given a
byelection had just been held for a colleague watching porn in parliament, the
same should happen in Pincher’s seat because “this is much worse”.
Angela
Rayner, the Labour deputy leader, said: “This latest episode shows how far
standards in public life have been degraded on Boris Johnson’s watch. Boris
Johnson has serious questions to answer about why Chris Pincher was given this
role in the first place and how he can remain a Conservative MP.
“The
Conservative party is so mired in sleaze and scandal that it is totally unable
to tackle the challenges facing the British people.”
Boris
Johnson’s government has been hit by a string of sexual misconduct scandals in
recent months. Last month, a Conservative MP was arrested on suspicion of rape
and sexual assault offences spanning seven years between 2002 and 2009. He was
later bailed without being charged, pending further inquiries.
Scotland
Yard said the unnamed man in his 50s was also detained on suspicion of indecent
assault, abuse of position of trust and misconduct in public office. The MP has
not been suspended by the Conservative party but Heaton-Harris asked him to
stay away from parliament.
Imran Ahmad
Khan, the Conservative MP for Wakefield, was found guilty in April of sexually
assaulting a 15-year-old boy after plying him with gin at a party in 2008. Khan
assaulted the boy in Staffordshire in January 2008, 11 years before he became
an MP. He resigned as an MP two weeks after he was found guilty.
Neil
Parish, the Conservative MP for Tiverton and Honiton, also stood down in April
after admitting to watching porn on his phone in the House of Commons, with the
party subsequently losing its huge majority in the seat to the Liberal
Democrats.
Another
Conservative MP, David Warburton, lost the whip after the Sunday Times reported
he was facing allegations from three women.
Warburton,
56, was accused by one of the women of climbing into bed with her naked. She
told the newspaper she repeatedly warned that she did not want to have sex with
him, but alleged that he ground his body against her and groped her breasts.
He is said
to have denied any wrongdoing, and insisted he had “enormous amounts of
defence, but unfortunately the way things work means that doesn’t come out
first”.
Rob
Roberts, the Conservative MP for Delyn, was allowed to rejoin the party despite
an independent investigation finding that he sexually harassed a junior member
of staff.
Roberts was
suspended for 12 weeks after the independent panel found he had made
“significant” repeated and unwanted sexual advances towards a former member of
staff and used “his position as his employer to place him under pressure to
accede”.
He had his
membership to the party restored but continued to sit as an independent MP in
parliament.
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