BORIS Johnson is under increasing pressure to explain his leniency towards a former Tory minister after fresh groping allegations were made against him.
Six new claims have been made, with Chris Pincher’s latest accuser saying he was “shell-shocked” by the decision not to kick the Tamworth MP out of the parliamentary party immediately.
Pincher quit as Conservative deputy chief whip after being accused of drunkenly groping two men at a private members’ club in London this week.
The Prime Minister only bowed to pressure to remove the whip from his ally, meaning he is now sitting in the Commons as an independent after an official investigation was launched.
Johnson was also facing questions over how much he knew about Pincher’s behaviour when he made him deputy chief whip in February.
Former adviser Dominic Cummings said the Prime Minister had referred to the MP “laughingly in No 10 as ‘Pincher by name, pincher by nature’ long before appointing him”.
Fresh allegations have been reported in the Independent, the Mail on Sunday and the Sunday Times – including claims Pincher made unwanted advances to male MPs in a bar in parliament and in his own parliamentary office. No official complaints have been lodged.
One of the MPs is said to have alerted Downing Street in February over an alleged incident. They raised concerns that Pincher might be made a party whip. No 10 denies Johnson knew of any specific allegations when he appointed Pincher to a ministerial role.
The disgraced MP says he is seeking “professional medical support” and hopes to return to represent his constituents in Staffordshire “as soon as possible”. No 10 insists the PM was unaware of any "specific" allegations before Pincher was hired as chief whip.
The Mail on Sunday alleged he threatened to report a parliamentary researcher to her boss after she tried to stop his “lecherous” advances to a young man at a Tory party conference.
The Sunday Times alleged he made unwanted passes at two Conservative MPs in 2017 and 2018, after his first resignation as a whip over claims he made unwanted advances to Olympic rower and Conservative candidate Alex Story.
Story, at the time a young Tory activist, alleged that year that the MP untucked the back of his shirt, massaged his neck and whispered “You’ll go far in the Tory Party”.
One of the latest alleged victims shared his anger at Johnson over his handling of the incident at the exclusive Carlton Club on Wednesday.
The man told the Sunday Times that he initially did not want to report the incident, thinking “this is something that happens in Westminster”.
“But I am angered by the fact that I should feel like that, and even more angry by the way No 10 have dealt with it . . . I am furious. I know it sounds really silly but I felt shell-shocked when I found out they were initially going to let him keep the whip,” he added.
Pincher did not respond to requests for comment on the latest allegations, but the newspapers behind them said he denied the claims.
Downing Street did not deny that there had been concerns about Pincher before his appointment, but insisted Johnson “was not aware of any specific allegations”.
Johnson initially resisted calls to remove the whip until Parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme launched an investigation on Friday.
Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey, questioned about the Pincher scandal on Sunday morning, said she did not believe the PM was “aware of specific claims” before appointing the former chief whip to a ministerial role.
Coffey told Sky News “the leadership qualities of the Prime Minister are very evident” when questioned about Johnson setting standards.
She added: “I have no idea what Dominic Cummings tweets on anything, I don’t follow his Twitter handle.”
Labour's shadow business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, said elements of Coffey’s defence were “desperate”.
“It’s clear from what we know this morning that Chris Pincher should never have been put back into the whips’ office,” the Labour MP told Ridge.
"Sorry, it's still not very clear" - @SophyRidgeSky@ThereseCoffey is pressed on whether the prime minister knew about allegations against Chris Pincher before he was appointed deputy Chief Whip in February.#Ridge https://t.co/GhEVgl1st3 📺 Sky 501, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/htvURFbTe6
— Sophy Ridge on Sunday & The Take (@RidgeOnSunday) July 3, 2022
The latest allegations came after the Conservative Party was hit by a series of scandals relating to sexual misconduct.
In May, Neil Parish quit as MP for Tiverton and Honiton after admitting viewing pornography in the Commons chamber.
A month earlier then-Wakefield MP Imran Ahmad Khan was jailed for 18 months for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy.
In both cases, the Conservatives lost the ensuing by-elections.
A third unnamed Tory MP has been told by whips to stay away from Parliament after being arrested on suspicion of rape and other offences.
In a statement, Pincher said he would “co-operate fully” with the investigation.
“As I told the Prime Minister, I drank far too much on Wednesday night, embarrassing myself and others, and I am truly sorry for the upset I caused,” he continued.
“The stresses of the last few days, coming on top of those over the last several months, have made me accept that I will benefit from professional medical support.
“I am in the process of seeking that now, and I hope to be able to return to my constituency duties as soon as possible.”
