UK's Johnson Could Face Challenge ‘Before Xmas’ Over 'Bungled' Handling of Pincher Groping Claims
11:42 GMT 05.07.2022 (Updated: 15:20 GMT 28.05.2023)
© AFP 2023 / PETER BYRNE
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Yet another row has thrust Boris Johnson into the crosshairs, as questions are increasingly asked about what the UK Prime Minister knew about a slew of damning allegations regarding former Tory deputy chief whip Christopher Pincher before appointing him to a government role.
Boris Johnson has faced fresh warnings that his time in office is nearing its end in the wake of how he has handled the latest row involving disgraced MP Christopher Pincher, the Daily Mail has reported.
The shamed Tory MP quit as deputy chief whip on 1 July and was later suspended by his party over allegations he groped two men at the Carlton Club - a Conservative Party private members’ club in St James's Street - on 30 June. Anger had been aroused after Downing Street insisted the UK Prime Minister had been unaware of “specific allegations” concerning Pincher before appointing him to the deputy chief whip post in February.
“The party has had enough. I'll be amazed if Boris gets to Christmas. It’s more about No 10 incompetence than Chris. More lies. It’s either over for Boris, or it’s over for more than 100 colleagues,” a northern Tory MP, was cited as saying.
The PM’s official spokesman insisted Boris Johnson knew of "allegations that were either resolved or did not progress to a formal complaint", adding that "it was deemed not appropriate to stop an appointment simply because of unsubstantiated allegations".
Pincher, according to No 10, "had lots of skills and experience for the role".
When asked to comment, former No 10 advisor, Dominic Cummings, claiming that Johnson had referred to the disgraced MP as “Pincher by name, pincher by nature” long before the promotion.
‘Still Not Telling the Truth’
However, the official response from No 10 has only fueled a chorus of angry voices demanding explanations from the PM. Crossbench peer, Simon, Lord McDonald of Salford, penned a letter to the parliamentary watchdog, deploring how No10 “keeps changing its story and is still not telling the truth”.
According to him, the PM was told “in person” about a “formal complaint” concerning Pincher by a “group of officials” at the Foreign Office in the summer of 2019.
“The original No 10 line is not true and the modification is still not accurate. Mr Johnson was briefed in person about the initiation and outcome of the investigation. There was a 'formal complaint'. Allegations were 'resolved' only in the sense that the investigation was completed; Mr Pincher was not exonerated. To characterize the allegations as 'unsubstantiated' is therefore wrong,” Lord McDonald wrote in the letter to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.
Shortly after Lord McDonald published his letter on Twitter, Dominic Raab, the Deputy Prime Minister, faced a grilling on BBC Breakfast. Raab, Foreign Secretary in 2019 when the complaint was made, insisted he was “very confident” in the decisions that were taken at the time.
Raab earlier told LBC Radio:
“We were clear that what happened was inappropriate, but we resolved it without going for a formal disciplinary process. I spoke directly to Chris Pincher in no uncertain terms and I referred it to the Cabinet Office to seek that assurance.”
Disgraced Ex-Tory MP
The MP for Tamworth in Staffordshire quit as deputy chief whip on 1 July and was suspended by his party over allegations he groped two men at the Carlton Club, the Conservative Party’s private members’ club, in London on Wednesday evening.
In his resignation letter, Pincher confessed he "drank far too much" and "embarrassed [himself] and other people", but stopping short of referring to the claims of inappropriate behavior.
Pincher previously quit office in 2017 after being accused of making a pass at former Olympic rower and Tory activist Alex Story. At the time, the Tory MP was cleared of wrongdoing by a party inquiry.
2 July 2022, 05:20 GMT
However, as the scandal resurfaced, six further claims of inappropriate behavior emerged over the weekend, according to media reports. The allegations against Pincher are now to be investigated by the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS).
‘New Rebel Challenge’
Meanwhile, Johnson is facing questions regarding the extent of his knowledge about the damning allegations concerning Pincher. On Sunday, defending the PM, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey told the BBC that "to the best of my knowledge" Johnson had not been aware of "specific allegations" against Pincher at the time of the appointment. The latter had gone “through [a] vetting process like normal," she told Sky News.
She said she had received the assurance from the No 10 press office.
Amid the fresh twists and turns in the accounts of Johnson’s handling of the matter, Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner claimed the PM's “desperate attempts to cover up what he knew about sexual assault complaints against Chris Pincher before appointing him have been blown out the water”.
The Liberal Democrats also urged the PM to “own up to his web of lies and finally come clean today”.
“They need to understand the scale and the gravity of the story and, indeed, get ahead of it. It is dominating the news day after day after day,” senior Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood was cited as telling Sky News.
Despite Johnson escaping a no confidence vote over “partygate” last month, rebel Tory MPs are said to be hoping to oust the PM on the strength of the fresh row. They are reportedly plotting to change party rules so that Johnson will face another no confidence vote sooner than the 12 months' immunity granted under present guidelines.
This might be achieved by securing key posts on the 1922 Committee which is in charge of leadership contests. However, as elections to the body are only due next week, to be followed by the MPs’ summer break, the revolt might “come to a head in the three weeks in September”, a source was cited as saying.
