Boris Johnson is under growing pressure to take immediate disciplinary action against a Conservative MP accused of watching pornography in the House of Commons.
The Chief Whip issued a statement Wednesday proposing that the matter be referred to the Independent Complaints and Complaints Scheme (ICGS), which deals with sexual harassment and other disciplinary matters. But senior Tories wondered why he had not taken direct action against the lawmaker, whose alleged behavior had been observed by two colleagues in recent months.
The MP’s identity is known on party whips, of course, but sources have dismissed speculation that the MP himself was whipped.
A cabinet minister described the situation as “crazy everywhere”, while Caroline Knox, chair of the Committee on Women and Equality, said: “I hope the boss pulls the whip. In any other workplace, they would be on gardening. “
Chris Heaton-Harris, the chief whip, attended a meeting of the 2022 Committee – a group of Tory women – earlier this week, when a series of incidents were described, including the MP watching pornography.
On Thursday, Labor leader Keira Starmer called on Johnson to circumvent the potentially long ICGS process and directly discipline the MP. “This is an unusual case because the Tory party knows who this man is. I think they have to deal with this, and sooner or later … They know who it is. They need to take action now, “he said.
Misogyny and sexism in parliament have come under scrutiny in recent days as the widely criticized Mail on Sunday story claims Tory lawmakers believe Labor Labor leader Angela Raynor crossed her legs to distract Johnson. of the Prime Minister.
Asked whether the MP accused of watching pornography should lose his whip, the prime minister insisted on Thursday that the case be investigated independently. It was “obviously unacceptable for someone to do such a thing in the workplace”, but “what needs to happen now is that the right procedures need to be followed, the independent complaint and grievance procedure needs to be activated and we need to understand the facts “Johnson said.
A spokesman for the whips’ office said: “This is the best way to deal with it, because they can look at everything fairly, independently. This is the best process we can have to deal with this issue. “
At least five cabinet ministers have expressed private or public concern about the reports. Earlier in the day, Attorney General Suela Braverman said some lawmakers were behaving like “animals” and spoke of “roughening” behavior in parliament and elsewhere.
“I think this is happening in many, if not all, jobs where a small number of men – and these are men – are behaving in an unacceptable way,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Women’s Hour.
“I think this is actually the most worrying symptom for our society and culture. How did we get to a place in our society where watching porn in a test tube, in public, in front of children, in parliament, at work, has somehow become normal for some people?
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Nadine Doris, the culture minister, told the BBC: “I’ve been around for a while and I think it’s actually getting worse. [for female MPs] … I always thought to bring in more women… things will get better, but unfortunately I don’t see that happening right now. I think we just need to have a majority of women maybe. So it’s just disappointing. “
Sajid Javid, the health minister, said: “There have been several cases of inappropriate and sexist behavior in parliament recently. This is a shame. Parliamentarians are civil servants and it is their duty to set an example of character and integrity. Westminster culture needs to change. ”
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