Chris Pincher suspended as Tory MP after groping allegation

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Politics
Chris PincherUK government

A former deputy chief whip alleged to have groped two men in a private members’ club has been suspended as a Conservative MP.

Chris Pincher will sit as an independent after a report was made to Parliament’s behaviour watchdog.

He resigned his government job in a resignation letter on Thursday, saying he had “drunk far too much” and “embarrassed myself and other people”.

Former housing minister Kelly Tolhurst has been appointed as his replacement.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson was under pressure to suspend him from the party after senior Tory MPs and opposition parties said his position was untenable.

But on Friday, the action was taken after a formal complaint was made to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS).

A spokesperson for Conservative chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris said the prime minister agreed that Mr Pincher should be suspended after a formal complaint had been made to the ICGS.

Complaints against MPs are investigated by independent investigators, who can make recommendations for further action. A spokesperson for the ICGS said they could not provide any information on any complaint.

Witnesses told the BBC that Mr Pincher was seen “extremely drunk” at the Carlton Club, the Conservative Party members’ club in St James’s, central London, on Wednesday night.

The BBC understands London’s Metropolitan Police has not received any reports relating to an incident at the venue.

The Sun newspaper first reported the resignation, saying he was drinking at the club when he is alleged to have assaulted two other male guests.

Several concerned Tory MPs contacted the Conservative whips’ office to complain about his behaviour, the paper said.

Dozens of people were present in a small room with a bar at the private members’ club including other MPs, ministers, club officials and people working in public relations, the BBC has been told.

In a resignation letter on Thursday evening, Mr Pincher wrote to the prime minister: “Last night I drank far too much.”

He added: “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.”

Chris Pincher's resignation letter

Labour’s Deputy Leader Angela Rayner said the prime minister had been “dragged kicking and screaming into taking any action at all” against Mr Pincher.

“He just can’t be trusted to do the right thing. This whole scandal is yet more evidence of his appalling judgement,” she said.

“It’s time for Conservative MPs to show this chaotic prime minister the door before he can do any more damage.”

Mr Pincher was first elected as MP for Tamworth in 2010 and served as a minister under former Prime Minister Theresa May.

He had served in the whips’ office in Mr Johnson’s government since February 2022, and was previously a minister in the Foreign Office and the Levelling Up Department.

Whips are MPs who are in charge of party discipline and are tasked with ensuring colleagues on their side vote with the party line in Parliament and providing pastoral support.

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