UK Politics

Keir Starmer says the Conservatives must take immediate action against the MP who watched porn in the Commons, instead of leaving it an independent investigation.The Tories have referred the controversy to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (IGS) – promising “appropriate action” if the allegation is proved.But the Labour leader said there is no need for the party to await the inquiry’s conclusions, because the MPs’ identity is known to its whips’ office.“This is an unusual case because the Tory Party knows who this individual is,” he said, on the local elections campaign trail in Cumbria.“I think that they should deal with it and deal with it sooner rather than later and take appropriate action.“So, nothing wrong with the independent process, but I think the Tory Party, they know who this is, they should take action now.”The criticism came as Boris Johnson’s official spokesman said he did not know which MP is being accused and referred inquiries to the Conservative Party.Although an ICGS inquiry requires a complaint to be made by someone who witnessed an alleged incident, this is not believed to be an obstacle to it taking place.Allegations of sexism and misogyny have engulfed the Tories, after a male Conservative MP was accused by two female colleagues of openly watching pornography on his phone.One of the MPs, a minister, said the incident took place in the chamber last week and separately during a committee hearing, telling colleagues the man was aware he had been seen, yet continued watching.A second female Tory MP said she had also seen the man watching pornography. She is believed to have she had attempted to film him as proof of what he was doing.Government sources have suggested the man in question is a backbencher – not a minister – implying his identity is known.The prime minister said on Wednesday that he considered sexual harassment “intolerable” and agreed that it should be “grounds for dismissal”.However, a spokesperson for the chief whip said, late on Wednesday: “Following allegations of inappropriate behaviour in the House of Commons the chief whip has asked that this matter be referred to the ICGS.“Upon the conclusion of any ICGS investigation the chief whip will take appropriate action.”The party has acknowledged that “only that people who have witnessed the situation” can make a complaint to the body – which means the party cannot.The meeting at which the allegation emerged was attended by some of the most senior women in the Conservative Party, including Theresa May, and some current ministers.The Independent has been told that the “united view of the meeting is that this MPs should be suspended by the party”. More

MP accused of watching porn in Commons could face recall petition, says ministerKeir Starmer has called on the Conservatives to take immediate action against the MP accused of watching pornography in the Commons, instead of leaving it to an independent investigation.The Tories have referred the controversy to the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (IGS) – the watchdog set up in the wake of the Me Too movement – promising “appropriate action” if the allegation is proved true.But the Labour leader said there is no need for the party to await the inquiry’s conclusions “because [it] knows who this individual is,” Sir Keir said while on the local elections campaign trail in Cumbria. “I think that they should deal with it and deal with it sooner rather than later.”It comes amid multiple accusations of sexism in Westminster, following the row over comments made by a Tory MP about Angela Rayner’s legs and allegations from a female Labour MP about lewd remarks she was subjected to by a member of the shadow cabinet.Show latest update

1651156982Tory MP criticises party’s decision to refer ‘porn MP’ to watchdogConservative Caroline Nokes has said the decision by her party’s chief whip to refer the complaint made about a male colleague watching porn in the Commons to a parliamentary watchdog amounted to “kicking it into long grass”.Speaking to the PoliticsHome, Ms Nokes, who is chair of the women and equalities select committee, said she was “disappointed” that no action was taken swiftly against the accused MP the following day.“I thought I would wake up on Wednesday morning to find somebody had had the whip withdrawn, and that didn’t happen,” she told this week’s episode of the The Rundown podcast.“We’ve seen the whip withdrawn from colleagues for a variety of reasons over the years. I thought this seemed to be fairly straightforward. It was raised by one colleague, it was corroborated by another. That seems to me perfectly enough to withdraw the whip.”She also dismissed suggestions that the MP accused of looking at porn in the Commons, who has not been named, had accidentally opened an “unsolicited” link on his phone, insisting that the allegation from two female colleagues was “quite clear”. More

A minority of men in politics “behave like animals” and are bringing Parliament into disrepute with unacceptable behaviour, according to cabinet minister Suella Braverman.The attorney general’s comments come after an unidentified Conservative MP was accused of watching pornography in the Commons chamber, with the matter being referred to a parliamentary watchdog.Referring to the “reprehensible” incident, Ms Braverman said she was “shocked and appalled”, telling BBC’s Woman’s Hour she was also “ashamed this person is carrying the Conservative rosette”.Describing her own experience of political life, she said: “I’ve been a member of parliament now for nearly seven years. I’ve been in the Conservative Party and in politics for 20 years.“My personal experience, I have to say, is that on no occasion have I been made to feel uncomfortable, and all the men that I’ve worked with have been respectful, courteous, and supportive”.But she went on: “There is, however, a very small minority of men, and it is men, who fall short and there are some bad apples who are out of order, who behave like animals and are bringing parliament into disrepute to be honest.“So I don’t think we should be saying there’s a pervasive culture — that’s not my experience. There are certain individuals who are behaving in an unacceptable way.”Speaking about the allegation of a Conservative MP watching porn, Ms Braverman said she had been wondering why an individual “would be so brazen, so reckless, so stupid, so appallingly behaved to be watching porn in the workplace, in broad daylight and in the presence of colleagues.”“What would possess them?” she asked. “It’s totally unacceptable.”Ms Braverman said she was not aware of the identity of the MP concerned and wasn’t present at a meeting of female Tories who raised the case during a discussion with the party’s chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris on Tuesday evening.But she welcomed the Mr Heaton-Harris’s decision to refer the claim to parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) — a body that was set up in the wake of the Me Too movement.“I hope if this is proven to be true then we will see the most severe reprimand,” she added, with the Conservative whip being remove and echoed defence secretary Ben Wallace’s earlier comment the individual should be subject to a recall petition and no longer being an MP.Pressed on reports that 56 MPs have been referred to ICGS, including three members of the cabinet for allegations of sexual misconduct, Ms Braverman said she would not “pre-judge” investigations.“It’s been reported there has been 56 complaints — any complaint is too high. That is a minority of the number of men in Parliament, the number of people in Parliament, a small minority I would argue,” she added.“It’s not reflective of the consensus or the majority, so I say we do have a minority of people who are behaving in an unacceptable way.” More

The Electoral Commission has said it is “concerned” about its future independence after the government passed a new law to put it under ministerial control.The changes included in the Elections Bill, which finally passed the House of Lords on Wednesday night, will hand the government sweeping powers to direct the elections watchdog’s priorities.Opponents say the changes endanger free and fair elections and amount to an “authoritarian power grab” that will let ministers shape how electoral law applies to their own party and political opponents.Under the bill, which was passed be peers by 202 votes to 181, the secretary of state will be able to unilaterally issue a “statement of purpose” that directs the Commission’s priorities.The bill will also automatically add a government minister to the committee that oversees and scrutinises the work of the Commission – entrenching a Tory majority.The law had been defeated by peers on Monday but was sent back to the upper house again two days later – a move which sources in the House of Lords say caught opposition parties off-guard.Just 67 Labour peers turned out to vote against the measure, 70 Liberal Democrats, 33 crossenchers, and three rebel Conservatives. The House of Lords has 767 members and an inbuilt opposition majority, but many peers do not turn up to vote on all occasions. Opposition parties were surprised by how many Tories turned up on Wednesday, and were unable to stop the bill despite having done so two days earlier.Responding to the vote, a spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said: “As the political finance regulator and the body which oversees free and fair elections, the way we work and our decisions must remain independent. This underpins fairness and trust in the electoral system, as well as public and cross party confidence in the Commission.“We remain concerned about the potential impact of this measure, and look to the formal consultation on the Government’s proposed statement once that is available.“All parties have stated during the parliamentary consideration of the Elections Bill that the independence of the Electoral Commission is vital to the functioning of a healthy democracy. The Commission will continue to act in an independent and impartial way in order to help maintain public confidence in elections across the UK.”The bill also introduces a requirement for voter ID at elections, which critics say will make it disproportionately harder for demographics that favour opposition parties to vote, suppressing turnout.Kyle Taylor, director of campaign group Fair Vote UK, said that the government had essentially “voted to officially end the independence of the Electoral Commission” and that the new powers mean ministers “can effectively rig election rules in their favour”.”This is how countries slide into authoritarianism,” he added. “First you take control of the institutions, then you rig them in your favour and ban noisy protest so people can’t fight back. It’s a dark day for democracy.”Naomi Smith, chief executive campaign group Best for Britain, said: “Last night was the last chance to protect the independence of the elections watchdog and with it free and fair elections in the UK.“Despite the enormous efforts of a cross party, cross organisational resistance to the government’s authoritarian power grab, tonight Johnson’s regime succeeded in its latest pursuit to dodge accountability. “There is now an urgent need to remove this government and undo the damage they have wrought on our institutions and public trust in politics. Opposition parties must work together to make this a reality.”Alex Norris, Labour’s shadow minister for Levelling Up and Elections, told The Independent that the move was “outrageous”.“Just as with Owen Paterson and with their attempts to prevent the Prime Minister being investigated for lying about breaking lockdown rules, the Tories are trying to rig the rules of the game to help themselves, with potentially dangerous consequences,” he said.Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson Alistair Carmichael added that “any threat to the independence of the Electoral Commission” was “an existential threat to democracy in the UK”. He said: “We cannot allow Boris Johnson to rewrite the rulebook in order to prop up his failing Government.Conservative Cabinet Office minister Lord True told peers on Wednesday night that the bill was “necessary” and took “a reasonable approach to reforming the accountability of the Electoral Commission whilst respecting their operational independence”.He added that the changes “will not allow the government to direct the Commission’s decision-making nor will it undermine the Commission’s other statutory duties”. The minister said the government would accept minor amendments restricting the content of the “statement of purpose”, and increasing parliamentary scrutiny – but opposition peers said this amounted only to a minor tweak. Crossbench peer Lord Judge, a former head of the judiciary, said the bill’s provisions were “inconsistent with the need for the Commission to be and to be seen to be independent of the government and indeed all political parties”. Lord Blunkett, a former Labour Home Secretary said: “This is so fundamental to the way in which we conduct our democracy, our election processes, and therefore the transparency and trust that people should expect … it will come home to bite them, I promise them.” More

Labour is buying targeted online adverts attacking the Lib Dems for wanting to decriminalise drugs, The Independent has learned.Keir Starmer’s party in mid-April began to buy Facebook and Instagram attack ads singling out the policy to tens of thousands of people.It comes as the opposition ramps up authoritarian rhetoric and policies on social issues like climate protests and criminal justice. In January Keir Starmer said he was not in favour of changing drug laws – putting him at odds with mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who wants to pilot new approaches in the capital. Facebook’s ad library, which keeps a record of ads purchase, shows Sir Keir’s party started to buy the adverts in the run-up to local elections next month May.The Lib Dems say they want want to take a public health approach to drug addiction, treating it as medical issue rather than criminal.They also say they would give people who need it access to medical cannabis and regulate sales of it market. But the Labour ads falsely claim Ed Davey’s party wants to “legalise drugs”, a different policy.One version of the advert says “The Lib Dems want to legalise drugs and soften punishments” as well as “get rid of nuclear weapons”, next to a picture of Ed Davey.A second version features the text “LEGALISE DRUGS” on a yellow background, next to a headline clipped from The Independent.The headline, which is actually from 2015 when Nick Clegg was leader, says “All drugs should be decriminalised, say the Lib Dems” – not supporting the claim in the rest of the advert.The anti-decriminalisation push comes weeks after Labour called for a nationwide ban on climate protests on roads and around oil depots.A spokesperson for Labour left-wing pressure group Momentum described the adverts as “morally disgraceful, politically inept”.”The public actually support liberalising our drug laws and ending the failed War on Drugs,” they said.”But if you conflate the public with Fleet Street, you’d never know it.”A poll by YouGov conducted last year found that by 52 per cent to 32 per cent UK voters would support the full legalisation of cannabis.Facebook allows adverts to be targeted by demographics and location, meaning parties can say one thing to one set of voters and another to another set.A Liberal Democrat spokesperson said: “Instead of pushing false claims about the Liberal Democrats, Labour would do better to focus on the Conservative government’s appalling record on crime, which is seeing 5,000 crimes go unsolved every day. “Liberal Democrats are calling for proper community policing, where officers are visible, trusted and focused on cutting crime. “These local elections are a chance to elect Liberal Democrat councillors who will work hard to prevent crime and make sure people can truly feel safe in their communities.” More

Boris Johnson is to admit he was present in his Downing Street flat during the lockdown-busting ‘Abba party’ — but only in order to conduct a job interview with a close friend of his wife.The prime minister has refused to say whether he was at the 13 November, 2020 gathering – held to mark the departure of Dominic Cummings – but is now conceding privately that he was there.The sound of The Winner Takes It All is said to have boomed through the building, making it one of the most controversial of up to six events Mr Johnson attended in apparent breach of Covid laws.Last week, Mr Johnson told Tory MPs it was “a work event” — lifting the lid on the evidence he is likely to have given the police and Sue Gray’s stalled Cabinet Office inquiry.Now, he is expected to argue that he invited Henry Newman — then an adviser to Michael Gove — to join him in the No 11 flat where he lives with his wife and children.A government source told The Times that Mr Johnson has claimed he did not break the law because he was conducting a work-related interview with the adviser in another part of the flat.The PM invited Mr Newman up to the flat to distance the pair from leaving drinks being held elsewhere in the building for Lee Cain, who had just been ousted as his director of communications.Separately, Downing Street has not denied that the prime minister effectively turned Mr Cain’s event into a leaving party. “He said he wanted to say a few words for Lee and started pouring drinks for people and drinking himself,” a source told the Sunday Times.Carrie Johnson has previously described her close friend Mr Newman as her political “bestie” and he is said to be a regular Downing Street visitor.The prime minister is expected to escape a fine for the “bring your own booze” party he attended in the No 10 garden, a legal expert has predicted – despite others being punished.But his troubles have deepened after he failed to block a Commons inquiry into whether he lied to MPs, when he wrongly told them no Covid rules were broken.Top Conservatives are predicting that a post-local elections challenge to Mr Johnson’s leadership is now inevitable, as MPs contemplate no end to the controversy.And, one senior Tory, Steve Baker, has warned the Conservatives will “reap the whirlwind” of public anger over the parties at the ballot box on 5 May. More

Britain announced Thursday that it is postponing until the end of 2023 some checks on imports from the European Union that are required under post-Brexit trade rules, citing economic disruption caused by the war in Ukraine.It’s the fourth time the U.K. has delayed checks it agreed to as part of its divorce deal with the EU. The two sides have been bickering since Britain left the 27-nation bloc about the new arrangements, with a set of special rules for Northern Ireland proving a particularly tough sticking point that risks sparking a trade war.Since Britain left the EU’s single market at the end of 2020, imports from the bloc are supposed to be subject to the same checks as goods from everywhere else in the world. But while some controls have been introduced by the U.K., others have been delayed.The British government said measures that were due to take effect from July 1 — including physical checks on fresh food and a ban on EU sausages and chilled meats — “will no longer be introduced this year.”It said “Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and the recent rise in global energy costs, have had a significant effect on supply chains that are still recovering from the pandemic,” and checks would put a further burden on struggling businesses.Britain said it would aim to bring in the new measures “in an improved way” at the end of 2023.Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman, Max Blain, said Britain was “not introducing the checks as planned” and was “working on a new model” that would use the latest data and technology to ease burdens on businesses.Like other countries, Britain has experienced months of sporadic supply problems, with gaps on supermarket shelves, fast-food outlets running out of chicken and some pubs running dry of a full selection of beer. Experts cite a perfect storm of factors, including Brexit and COVID-19, leading to worker shortages in key areas such as trucking. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has driven up cost of essentials including fuel and cooking oil, has made things worse.U.K.-EU talks on resolving differences over trade rules have made limited progress. Britain’s Conservative government has accused the 27-nation bloc of being needlessly “purist” in its approach to the rules for Northern Ireland, while the EU says Britain is failing to honor a legally binding deal that Prime Minister Boris Johnson agreed toBritain has threatened to act unilaterally to suspend parts of the divorce deal if progress is not made.___Follow AP’s Brexit coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/brexit More

The Labour MP and former minister Liam Byrne faces a two-day suspension from the Commons for bullying a former staff member, an independent disciplinary panel has recommended.Following an investigation, the parliamentary commissioner for standards, Kathryn Stone, upheld an allegation of bullying against the MP by a former member of his constituency staff.The Independent Expert Panel, which hears appeals against decisions made by the commissioner, said the case involved a “serious breach” of the bulling and harassment policy.The panel said the Birmingham Hodge Hill MP abused his position of power and ostracized the staff member by ceasing personal contact with him for several months and denying him access to his Parliamentary IT account.“The impact of this behaviour was compounded by the first period of lockdown when the complainant was physically separated from work colleagues, uncertain of his future work status and had undergone a period of ill health”.It claimed Mr Byrne “sought to present his actions as a reasonable HR strategy in response to this incident,” but added: “We disagree. It was bullying. He should, as he now accepts, have tackled any misconduct through a proper disciplinary process not by ostracising the complainant”.The panel recommended the former minister to be suspended for two sitting days — a sanction that must be agreed by a motion in the the House of Commons.They also concluded that Mr Byrne should make a written apology to the former staff member and “undertk training and other actions to address the causes of his behaviour and the weaknesses in the management of his office”.Mr Byrne said he was “profoundly sorry” and the situation had been a “valuable lesson for me and one I am determined to learn”.In a statement he said: “Two years ago at the beginning of lockdown, following a workplace dispute that led me to send the complainant home… I did not resolve the dispute correctly with a proper disciplinary process, and having nevertheless extended the complainant’s contract, thereby failed to fulfil my obligations as an employer and Parliament’s behaviour code.“This constituted an ostracism which was a breach of Parliament’s behaviour code which I strongly support, and caused distress for which I am profoundly sorry. I have apologised in full to the individual concerned.“I’m incredibly grateful to the panel for recognising the genuine remorse I felt about the impact on the individual concerned, the steps I have already taken to ensure this never happens again along with the work still to do, and for concluding that I did not deliberately act to delay the investigation.“This has been a valuable lesson for me and one I am determined to learn as me and my team seek to offer the best possible service and voice for the residents of Hodge Hill.”A Labour Party spokesperson said: “The Labour Party fully supports the recommendations of this independent report, including the proposed sanction.” More