Government deputy chief whip Chris Pincher has resigned following a drunken incident last night (June 29) in which he “embarrassed myself and other people”. In a resignation letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Mr Pincher, who was responsible for maintaining discipline among Tory MPs, said it had been “the honour of my life” to have served in the Government.
According to reports in The Sun, he stood down after assaulting two guests at the Carlton Club – a Tory Party private members’ club in Piccadilly – on Wednesday evening. In his resignation letter, 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.
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"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."
Mr Pincher has been an MP for Tamworth since the 2010 general election, when the Conservatives formed a coalition Government with the Liberal Democrats. Before he became deputy chief whip, he was minister of state for Europe and the Americas, and Housing Minister. He also writes a column on alcoholic drinks for The Critic magazine.
He has served in the whips' office since February and as such was in charge of party discipline and tried to ensure that all Tory MPs vote with the party line.
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