Boris Johnson is facing mounting pressure to take action against a senior Tory MP who allegedly groped two men while drunk – amid claims the Prime Minister was already aware of previous claims of sordid behaviour.
Chris Pincher resigned as deputy chief whip last night, saying he had ’embarrassed himself and other people’, after drinking too much at the Tories‘ elite Carlton Club in London.
But Mr Johnson has been told to strip the Tamworth MP of the Tory whip as it emerged he was handed the key role enforcing party discipline in February despite allegations about his own lack of self control.
He apologised publicly and resigned as a whip before in 2017 after being accused by a Tory candidate of making an unwanted pass at him.
Politco today identified Mr Pincher as the Tory MP said to have required a ‘minder’ to accompany him to events to keep him out of trouble, something denied by the Conservatives.
No10 has said that as Pincher has resigned his whip role no further action is required. But critics pointed out that Neil Parish had resigned as Tiverton and Honiton MP for watching porn in the Commons – something less than an alleged sexual assault.
That resulted in the by-election last week where the Lib Dems overturned a Toruy majority of more than 24,000 to take the seat. Mr Pincher’s majority in Staffordshire is 20,000, but the seat was held by Labour for 13 years before he was elected in 2010.
One MP who was at the event at the Carlton Club on Wednesday claimed to the Guardian Mr Pincher had been so drunk ‘he could barely stand up’.
Welsh Secretary Simon Hart appeared to be reluctant to defend the 52-year-old former Europe minister, an ultra loyalist ally of the PM.
On the media round this morning he suggested that he could lose the whip by the end of the day and voiced his ‘frustration’ at the conveyor belt of sleaze engulfing the party.
Chris Pincher resigned as deputy chief whip last night, saying he had ’embarrassed himself and other people’, after drinking too much at the Tories’ elite Carlton Club in London.
But Mr Johnson has been told to strip the Tamworth MP of the Tory whip as it emerged he was handed the key role enforcing party discipline in February despite allegations about his own lack of self control.
Welsh Secretary Simon Hart appeared to be reluctant to defend the 52-year-old, suggesting he could lose the whip by the end of the day and voicing his ‘frustration’ at the conveyor belt of sleaze engulfing the party.
Mr Pincher’s majority in Staffordshire is 20,000, but the seat was held by Labour for 13 years before he was elected in 2010.
Pictured: The incident took place in the exclusive Carlton Club in London
The ‘Poundshop Weinstein’ with a history of inappropriate behaviour
Chris Pincher’s career has been dogged by inappropriate behaviour towards men, especially when he has held roles overseeing party discipline.
His resignation as deputy chief whip is the second time he has had to quit a disciplinary role over allegations of sexual misconduct towards men.
In 2017 the unmarried MP stepped down as an assistant whip and referred himself to police after The Mail on Sunday revealed how he made a pass at former Olympic rower and Tory activist Alex Story while dressed in a bathrobe.
Pincher (right) was sent in to handle party discipline in February after running a ‘shadow whipping campaign’ for the PM. But reports today suggest that he was not given the top job of chief whip because of allegations about his conduct.
Mr Pincher is said to have attempted to untuck Mr Story’s shirt after persuading him to come back to his London home. Mr Story, who competed in the 1996 Olympics, said Mr Pincher poured him a whisky, massaged his neck and whispered: ‘You’ll go far in the Conservative Party.’
Mr Pincher then disappeared into another room and ‘returned in a bathrobe like a poundshop Harvey Weinstein, with his chest and belly sticking out’, at which point Mr Story, who was 26 at the time, left.
Having referred himself to both the police and the Conservative Party complaints procedure, he was brought back by Theresa May as deputy chief whip in January 2018.
When Mr Johnson became Prime Minister in July 2019, he was moved to the Foreign Office as minister for Europe and the Americas before returning to the whips office for a third time.
Walsall-born Pincher has been a Tory since he was 18, having previously claimed he was politicised by the 1984-5 Miners’ Strike.
He worked for Sir Iain Duncan Smith’s leadership team in 2001 and made several attempts to win a seat for the Tories before taking Tamworth in 2010. It had been held by Labour since 1997.
He was sent in to handle party discipline in February after running a ‘shadow whipping campaign’ for the PM as he successfully fought off attempts to get rid of him over Partygate in the winter.
But reports today suggest that he was not given the top job of chief whip (which went to Chris Heaton-Harris) because of allegations about his conduct. But he was still given a senior role.
He has also faced criticism over non-sexual behaviour. In 2019 Tory MP Johnny Mercer received a ‘full and unreserved apology’ from the then Chief Whip Julian Smith after Pincher was alleged to have tried to persuade an ex-serviceman to provide ‘dirt’ on the former Army captain.
The Daily Mail revealed how Mr Pincher had been accused of seeking damaging information on Mr Mercer after meeting a former colleague of his for a drink.
‘Let’s let today play out, let the chief whip do his duty today, and then I think we might be having a very different conversation as the day goes on,’ he told Sky News.
Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said she believes Mr Pincher should have the whip suspended, saying the Government’s response to the allegations are a ‘total disgrace’.
She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘These allegations are really serious. This is about sexual assault. It comes after we’ve had the Wakefield and Tiverton by-elections, which were also as a result of serious incidents involving Conservative MPs.
‘So, the idea that the response that we’ve seen that the Prime Minister thinks he’s done the decent thing by resigning and there’s no need for an investigation, well, that’s a total disgrace.
‘The whip’s office are responsible for discipline and standards among Conservative MPs. Boris Johnson chose this MP to be deputy chief whip because he was a friend and ally, despite the fact that he had to resign five years ago from the whip’s office due to similar-sounding allegations.
‘Of course, there has to be a full investigation now and, of course, he should have the whip suspended while that investigation takes place.’
In his letter to the PM last night, Mr 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.
‘I want to assure you that you will continue to have my full support from the back benches, and I wish you all the best as you deal with aftershocks of Covid and the challenges of international inflation.
‘It has been the honour of my life to have served in Her Majesty’s Government.’
The Sun reports that Mr Pincher was drinking at the Tory Party private members club – the Carlton Club – in Piccadilly when he is said to have assaulted two fellow guests.
The resignation of Mr Pincher in such dramatic circumstances is a further blow for the Prime Minister who has been beset with allegations of misconduct over lockdown parties in Downing Street.
The MP for Tamworth was appointed alongside chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris last February to strengthen party discipline amid unrest among MPs over the way the Government was being run.
It is the second time he has quit the whips office, having resigned as a junior whip in November 2017 following a complaint that he made an unwanted pass at the former Olympic rower and Conservative candidate Alex Story.
He is alleged to have tried to untuck the shirt of Mr Story after persuading him to come back to his London home, as well as massaging his neck while saying: ‘You will go far in the Conservative Party.’
Mr Story told the Mail on Sunday that at one point Mr Pincher left the room, saying ‘let me just slip into something more comfortable’, before returning in a bathrobe ‘like a pound shop Harvey Weinstein’.
He was cleared of wrongdoing by a Conservative party probe.
Having referred himself to both the police and the Conservative Party complaints procedure, he was brought back by Theresa May as deputy chief whip in January 2018.
When Mr Johnson became Prime Minister in July 2019 he was moved to the Foreign Office as minister for Europe and the Americas before returning to the whips office for a third time.
His departure comes just days after Oliver Dowden quit as party co-chairman in the wake of the Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton by-election losses.
It leaves Mr Johnson – who returned from the Nato summit on Thursday after nine days out of the country – with another headache with two crucial roles to fill.
Mr Pincher’s resignation is the latest in a series of sleaze scandals to hit the Tory party in recent months.
In April, David Warburton had the Conservative whip withdrawn following the emergence of allegations of sexual harassment and cocaine use. The MP for Somerton and Frome faces a parliamentary investigation after being accused of abusing the drug and inappropriately touching three women.
Later that month, Conservative MP Neil Parish resigned his Tiverton and Honiton seat after watching pornography in the Commons.
Farmer Mr Parish first said he accidentally viewed one X-rated video when browsing for tractors, before later doing so deliberately in the Commons chamber.
Then last month, an unnamed Tory MP was arrested on suspicion of rape and sexual offences spanning seven years. The man in his 50s, allegedly committed the offences between 2002 and 2009 in London.
He was also arrested on allegations of indecent assault, abuse of a position of trust and misconduct in a public office, according to the Metropolitan police.
Conservative Party whips have asked the unnamed MP to stay away from Parliament during the investigation, but unions last night said he should be formally suspended to protect staff.
Also in May, Ahmad Khan was jailed for 18 months for sexually assaulting a boy aged 15.
Khan, 48, plied the youngster with gin, tried to persuade him to watch pornography and then groped him in his bed 14 years ago at the victim’s family home in Staffordshire.
The Wakefield MP was expelled from the Conservative Party following his conviction and resigned his seat, triggering a by-election won by Labour.
His victim told Southwark Crown Court that he still struggles with intimacy and being touched due to the ordeal.
The Carlton Club, where Mr Pincher allegedly groped two men, is a private members-only venue set up by senior Tories in 1832 where Conservative leaders are traditionally given lifetime membership which was only open to men until a rule change in 2008 under David Cameron.
Prior to that, the only full female member was Margaret Thatcher, who was given honorary membership when she became party leader in 1975.
The club is a popular spot for Conservative MPs to drink after Parliament due to its exclusive membership which only permits members and guests of members.
Mr Pincher is not expected to lose the party whip so will stay on as a Conservative MP, avoiding a by-election for the party.
Chris was first elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for Tamworth in May 2010, and was re-elected in December 2019 with a majority of 19,364.
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