maomao
普費斯
Well minister for armed forces is junior to secretary of state for defence so I took it as meaning that.
Tory ex-Minister arrested on suspicion of rape
- Thread starter MrCurry
- Start date
Raheem
Well-Known Member
Except it must not do, or he would have been described somewhere as a cabinet minister.
Paywall but enough info:
www.thetimes.co.uk
Whips knew of concerns about rape suspect Tory MP ‘for years’
The Conservative whips’ office has been aware of concerns relating to the alleged behaviour of the MP arrested last weekend on suspicion of rape dating back to 2010, The Times understands.Multiple sources claimed that ministers had to intervene to “manage” his conduct in 2016 and 2019. Present
www.thetimes.co.uk
Dogsauce
I’ve got Skol but I’m not a Scholar
Can we thus assume an MP since at least 2010? Does that narrow the field at all? Nor that I’m too curious as to who it is (and a little amused by how much some people on Twitter etc. want it to be one particular person even though probably not them).
phillm
Trolling through Life (TM)
And by all accounts as far as we know, the victim still has to work in Westminster with her rapist who hospitalised her. The sooner the police finish their initial investigations and arrest the culprit if there is a case to answer for the better. On Twitter apart from the obvious name that keeps occurring he isn't an ex 'senior' minister no other names are bubbling up with any veracity. Which means the police/journalists and those in the know are keeping tighter than a duck's arse on this which is unusual as thousands must know and leaks like shit usually happens.
The Times article in full ...
The Conservative whips’ office has been aware of concerns relating to the alleged behaviour of the MP arrested last weekend on suspicion of rape dating back to 2010, The Times understands.
Multiple sources claimed that ministers had to intervene to “manage” his conduct in 2016 and 2019. Present and former parliamentary workers claimed that he had also allegedly been involved in inappropriate behaviour at a party conference. They claim he was considered to be erratic in his dealings with colleagues, crass and quick to anger.
However, two sources close to the MP said they had not been aware of any alleged sexual impropriety before last week and were surprised by his arrest.
A Conservative Party spokeswoman said: “As there is a police investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment.”
The former minister was arrested last Saturday after a former parliamentary aide accused him of assault and sexual offences. The woman, in her early twenties, took her allegations to Mark Spencer, the chief whip, in April. She claims that he took no action and did not encourage her to contact the police.
It is understood that Mr Spencer does not believe that she reported a sexual assault to him in their conversation but acknowledges that she reported abusive behaviour and threats. Once the police became involved, the Tory party made clear he would not be suspended while the allegations were investigated, attracting criticism from MPs, trade unions and women’s charities.
The Conservatives defended their procedures, with a spokeswoman saying: “We take any complaint incredibly seriously. We have a code of conduct where people can report complaints in confidence. If a serious allegation is raised, we would immediately advise the individual to contact the police.”
The case has invited scrutiny of the tension between the secrecy of the whips’ office and the #MeToo movement encouraging women to speak out against harassment.
Whips are primarily responsible for getting the government’s business through parliament, but also for maintaining standards of conduct. The term dates to the 18th century, when it was known as “whipping-in”, a reference to the assistant in a fox hunt whose job it is to stop hounds straying from the pack.
Although an independent complaints system was set up in 2018 to take the handling of misconduct out of parties’ hands, the whips’ office acts as a pressure valve for unhappy MPs and staff. Only the whips, with the approval of the prime minister, can summarily suspend an MP.
The main parties have stated their commitment to rooting out sexual harassment, and the Tories have made progress with domestic abuse legislation. However, staff claim that the rhetoric does not match what happens when wrongdoing is alleged.
One Labour official said: “The whips’ office is hopeless in dealing with complaints. They are only concerned with protecting their MPs. It’s dispiriting to see whips dining with MPs thought to be abusive. It acts as another layer of protection for dodgy MPs.” A former aide to a Tory MP said: “Can you imagine [going] to work knowing one of your colleagues was arrested for rape but not knowing who?”
Others defended the whips’ actions as necessary to defend the privacy of MPs accused of wrongdoing and protect them from trial by public opinion.
Michael Fabricant, a former whip and Tory MP for Lichfield, tweeted after Labour had called for the arrested MP to be suspended: “In this country, you are innocent until proven guilty.”
Another senior Tory said: “Withdrawing the whip means that both the alleged perpetrator and the alleged victim will become obvious. All that will happen next is a media pile-on.”
Several former occupants of the whips’ office contrasted events with its “professionalisation” under David Cameron, when it came closer to resembling a human resources service, with more women and an eye to pastoral care. “It wasn’t about being fluffy but the idea that happier workers will be more supportive and make it easier to get business through,” one observed.
A sea change happened with the loss of the Tory majority in 2017. “There was a choice between being kind and putting the thumb screws on and Theresa May said she did not want to lose a single vote,” the same ex-whip said.
Boris Johnson’s arrival heralded a more disorganised approach, according to many insiders, driven by Downing Street’s apparent lack of interest in parliament, remote working amid the pandemic and by the influx of new MPs with looser party ties. One special adviser claimed that the prime minister and his team “don’t think about parliament very often at all — it’s an afterthought”.
The whips’ office has been dominated by men to an even greater extent than the Commons in general. One former whip said: “The thing with the Commons is it smells of boys, and this government smells of boys.”
brogdale
Coming to terms with late onset Anarchism
He has already been arrested and then released on bail.
phillm
Trolling through Life (TM)
So Nigel Evans was arrested and named why not this guy - I guess since they say he raped his researcher then the anonymity of the victim is precarious. If so then why haven't they named him but not in the context of an unspecified female in the first instance. The whole stinking thing reeks of corruption and cover-up.
EDIT from facebook
Parliament decided a couple of years ago not to divulge the name of any MP accused of any offence until they are actually charged. He's been bailed to appear, but not charged..... yet...
Tory MP Nigel Evans arrested after sex assault claims by two men
Deputy speaker in House of Commons held and house searched following allegations
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andysays
Love and solidarity
Have you actually read the article you've posted?
Because the accuser is described there, as she has been elsewhere, as
It appears, although this is just speculation on my part, like she may well have resigned her role and gone to the police after it became clear the Tory whip wasn't interested in taking any action or supporting her in any way.
Streathamite
ideological dogmatist
pretty much cabinet rank, or minister of state in the 'big 4'; cabinet office, home, foreign, treasory
Raheem
Well-Known Member
Bet you £20 to the server fund it's a junior minister.
maomao
普費斯
A senior junior minister?
phillm
Trolling through Life (TM)
If you win I'll add 20 to that as well. Or stop stupid bets and just donate the 20 quid would be nobler. Which is what I'll do.
DONE !
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not-bono-ever
meh
approaching the the whip as the first contact over a criminal allegation ? some some fucked up grievance procedure they have got going on there.
existentialist
Tired and unemotional
Sounds like they've got it just how they like it
phillm
Trolling through Life (TM)
Tory MP’s rape accuser: I’ve had no help
Wednesday, April 1, was a difficult day at No 10. Britain had been in lockdown for just over a week and the prime minister was isolated in his flat upstairs get
www.thetimes.co.uk
Wednesday, April 1, was a difficult day at No 10. Britain had been in lockdown for just over a week and the prime minister was isolated in his flat upstairs getting steadily weaker from the coronavirus. At about 9am the Downing Street switchboard called a young woman to connect her to the Conservative chief whip, Mark Spencer.The conversation that followed has raised questions about the Tory party’s duty of care to parliamentary staffers and the general welfare of junior employees in the Palace of Westminster.
The woman, a former parliamentary staffer in her twenties, was deeply apprehensive about talking to Spencer, the burly Nottinghamshire farmer who is Boris Johnson’s enforcer on the Tory back benches. She had never spoken to him before but she was determined to report disturbing claims of sexual assault and rape by a Conservative MP. According to confidential sources, she hoped the MP might be suspended by the party.
Spencer appeared well intentioned but clearly was unprepared for a conversation of such sensitivity, the sources said. The Sherwood MP is alleged to have asked how he could help and to have told her: “People who make threats rarely act upon them.”
He then advised her that he was “reluctant” to suspend the MP over the allegations, according to the sources, but that she should go to the “relevant authorities”. Spencer allegedly promised to investigate the MP informally by speaking to witnesses familiar with his suspected behaviour, before getting back to her in “a week or so”. We understand that he has not contacted her since.
The chief whip’s office said last week that Spencer “takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously”, but sources close to the woman say she was disappointed. She said he was “just trying to pacify me” and she felt she did not have the opportunity to detail her allegations in full.
Last weekend the MP was arrested on suspicion of rape and remains under investigation for sexual offences allegedly committed between last summer and January.
The Conservative Party has refused to suspend him, saying that it would be premature to do so before the police conclude their investigation. That decision has prompted a serious row, with some senior MPs insisting that the whip should be taken away. It asks questions not only of the party, but also of parliament itself.When a young woman complains to whips that she has been attacked by a powerful MP, what should they do? How are parties meant to balance the privacy and reputation of MPs accused of wrongdoing with the safeguarding of staff?
Despite the changes in attitude prompted by the #MeToo scandal, these questions still do not invite simple answers. Nor has the reality of working in parliament changed for most young people: MPs continue to act as their effective employers, responsible not only for their work but also for their wellbeing and career development.
The cramped office suites, corridors and bars of parliament are an ideal arena for the potential abuse of power. According to the latest figures, the parliamentary bullying and harassment hotline received 704 calls in 2018-19.
Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA, the civil servants’ and public service union, said: “Whatever the ingredients — power and alcohol — there is no other workplace like it where so many have complained about inappropriate behaviour.”
Parliament’s systems for handling complaints appear to be as arcane as the procedures of the House of Commons. In this case, the young woman’s search for help started on March 12 when she went to the Members’ and Peers’ Staff Association, which acts as an informal union and staff social club.It advised her to use parliament’s anonymous hotline and informally acted as a go-between, seeking access for her to the chief whip.There is no document or rulebook governing when the whips should suspend an MP, but when sexual assault allegations first emerged in 2017 against Charlie Elphicke, who at the time was the Tory MP for Dover and Deal, the then chief whip, Julian Smith, suspended him and ensured that members of his team accompanied the alleged victims to Scotland Yard.According to a person familiar with the decision to suspend Elphicke, who last month was convicted of three charges of sexual assault, the rationale was threefold: encouraging other women to come forward, safeguarding young staff and demonstrating that the party took such claims seriously.That principle appears to have been forgotten. Today’s approach may have been best summarised by Michael Fabricant, the Tory backbencher, who last week tweeted: “In THIS country, you are innocent until proven guilty.” Tories also argue that if they suspended the MP accused of rape, they would identify him, risking legal consequences and a backlash if he was later exonerated.We have learnt that the young woman’s next step, shortly before she spoke to the chief whip, was to contact parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS), which was set up two years ago under the premiership of Theresa May as a bullying and harassment helpline.It assigned her an “advocate” from a women’s charity to help her navigate the process. Two options were available: she could submit a complaint against the MP, triggering a parliamentary investigation, or she could go to the police.
According to a parliamentary source, contacting the ICGS is the “right thing to do”, although complainants must be willing to go through a potentially years-long investigation into their former employers. The source said: “Parliament is not a place for quick fixes.”
The process of drafting a complaint to the ICGS and finding a counsellor and medical professionals, who can diagnose any health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, takes weeks. For the young woman, this became all the more complicated earlier in summer when the ICGS was taken over by a new contractor.This meant that her advocate could no longer work for her and all the data had to be transferred to a new charity. Her allegations had to be retold all over again. One source revealed that the woman said: “It’s quite distressing as I had a close and genuine understanding relationship with my advocate and now I’ll have to go through that all again with someone new.”
phillm
Trolling through Life (TM)
Last Saturday an unmarked vehicle pulled up outside the MP’s home and officers took him to an east London police station. Scotland Yard said he had been arrested “on suspicion of rape”. He was later released on bail.For decades the Speaker was required to name and notify the House of Commons in the event that an MP was arrested. But in 2016 the rule was removed after it was decided that it violated the right to privacy enshrined in human rights laws.Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the current Speaker, was formally told of the MP’s arrest last Saturday night by the clerk of the House, but he was unable to act.This meant that the chief whip could not rely on parliamentary authorities to act or create a situation in which he was forced to suspend an MP.
Now Spencer must act alone to decide the MP’s fate while being seen to safeguard other young staffers who may come into contact with him when parliament returns from its summer recess next month.Johnson has asked the chief whip to provide a full explanation of his handling of the alleged victim, who has told confidantes that she is “devastated” by his apparent inaction.Spencer insists that he has a full note of the conversation with the alleged victim, showing that he had acted properly. He is understood to insist that the woman had not made allegations of serious sexual assault or sexual abuse when she spoke to him in April.Police officers are due to speak to the MP again on August 25. The investigation remains at an early stage but, while detectives look into the claims, the ICGS is unable to proceed with its own inquiry.Between the parliamentary authorities and the Conservative Party there is no known safeguarding plan in place for other aides. As a result, the FDA union wants to have urgent meetings with the House authorities to improvise an emergency plan. “They want [the accused MP] to be banned from the parliamentary estate,” said a person familiar with the discussions.Last night friends of the victim said that she feels abandoned by the party. The chief whip might not be required to make contact but, as a former parliamentary aide, she is “shocked” that nobody from the Conservative Party has approached her, they said.The chief whip’s office said: “The chief whip takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously and has strongly encouraged anybody who has approached him to contact the appropriate authorities, including parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme, which can formally carry out independent and confidential investigations.
“The matter is now in the hands of the police and any action taken will be decided once the investigation has been concluded.”
When the #MeToo scandal hit Westminster in 2017, the leaders of all the main parties agreed a new system was needed for MPs’ and peers’ staff to report bullying and sexual harassment allegations, writes Gabriel Pogrund.As the parliamentary authorities have since acknowledged, the Palace of Wesminster had operated as a workplace in “more or less the same way for over 700 years”.The top priority post-”Pestminster” was to prevent people from having to report bad behaviour to their line managers — often the MPs accused of misconduct. It also sought to remove power from politicians in deciding on the outcome of complaints.Two-and-a-half years on, women’s groups and trade unions deliver a mixed verdict on whether the reforms have gone far enough, or been implemented with sufficient speed.The centrepiece of the new regime is an independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS).As part of the service, victims can anonymously contact a helpline via telephone or email and make a complaint about any MP, MP’s staff or member of House of Commons staff.Since last October, allegations can be “non-recent” as well, meaning that the ICGS can trigger investigations into historic abuse. The parliamentary commissioner for standards, an official approved by MPs, will then conduct a confidential probe.It was only in June that MPs went further and voted to create an independent panel to decide on sanctions for those found to have bullied or harassed staff. The panel of eight experts, none of whom are MPs, will have the power to suspend or exclude MPs in serious cases.So far, not one has suffered such a punishment. But Amy Leversidge, assistant general secretary of the senior civil servants’ FDA union, said at the time it was an “amazing result”.In June, MPs also decided by a slender margin of five votes to ditch plans to have debates on certain panel decisions. That such plans were even considered was then described as “re-traumatising” and a “slap in the face” for victims.According to the latest figures, the ICGS had received 201 calls and emails in the first quarter of this year alone. The resulting complaints prompted 26 investigations. Last year, 806 calls and emails were received, leading to about 100 investigations.
Now Spencer must act alone to decide the MP’s fate while being seen to safeguard other young staffers who may come into contact with him when parliament returns from its summer recess next month.Johnson has asked the chief whip to provide a full explanation of his handling of the alleged victim, who has told confidantes that she is “devastated” by his apparent inaction.Spencer insists that he has a full note of the conversation with the alleged victim, showing that he had acted properly. He is understood to insist that the woman had not made allegations of serious sexual assault or sexual abuse when she spoke to him in April.Police officers are due to speak to the MP again on August 25. The investigation remains at an early stage but, while detectives look into the claims, the ICGS is unable to proceed with its own inquiry.Between the parliamentary authorities and the Conservative Party there is no known safeguarding plan in place for other aides. As a result, the FDA union wants to have urgent meetings with the House authorities to improvise an emergency plan. “They want [the accused MP] to be banned from the parliamentary estate,” said a person familiar with the discussions.Last night friends of the victim said that she feels abandoned by the party. The chief whip might not be required to make contact but, as a former parliamentary aide, she is “shocked” that nobody from the Conservative Party has approached her, they said.The chief whip’s office said: “The chief whip takes all allegations of harassment and abuse extremely seriously and has strongly encouraged anybody who has approached him to contact the appropriate authorities, including parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme, which can formally carry out independent and confidential investigations.
“The matter is now in the hands of the police and any action taken will be decided once the investigation has been concluded.”
When the #MeToo scandal hit Westminster in 2017, the leaders of all the main parties agreed a new system was needed for MPs’ and peers’ staff to report bullying and sexual harassment allegations, writes Gabriel Pogrund.As the parliamentary authorities have since acknowledged, the Palace of Wesminster had operated as a workplace in “more or less the same way for over 700 years”.The top priority post-”Pestminster” was to prevent people from having to report bad behaviour to their line managers — often the MPs accused of misconduct. It also sought to remove power from politicians in deciding on the outcome of complaints.Two-and-a-half years on, women’s groups and trade unions deliver a mixed verdict on whether the reforms have gone far enough, or been implemented with sufficient speed.The centrepiece of the new regime is an independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS).As part of the service, victims can anonymously contact a helpline via telephone or email and make a complaint about any MP, MP’s staff or member of House of Commons staff.Since last October, allegations can be “non-recent” as well, meaning that the ICGS can trigger investigations into historic abuse. The parliamentary commissioner for standards, an official approved by MPs, will then conduct a confidential probe.It was only in June that MPs went further and voted to create an independent panel to decide on sanctions for those found to have bullied or harassed staff. The panel of eight experts, none of whom are MPs, will have the power to suspend or exclude MPs in serious cases.So far, not one has suffered such a punishment. But Amy Leversidge, assistant general secretary of the senior civil servants’ FDA union, said at the time it was an “amazing result”.In June, MPs also decided by a slender margin of five votes to ditch plans to have debates on certain panel decisions. That such plans were even considered was then described as “re-traumatising” and a “slap in the face” for victims.According to the latest figures, the ICGS had received 201 calls and emails in the first quarter of this year alone. The resulting complaints prompted 26 investigations. Last year, 806 calls and emails were received, leading to about 100 investigations.
Damn right a rape complaint against an MP should get the immediate and full attention of the chief whip. Who else do you think should be the point of contact?
andysays
Love and solidarity
I think you may have what I take to be missed not-bono-ever 's point, which is that the unavoidable partially of the chief whip and their obvious interest in covering things up make them inappropriate to be the one dealing with such allegations.
At the very least, there should be someone within parliament who doesn't have an explicit party interest to uphold who can deal with such matters.
maomao
普費斯
It probably warrants a full-time appointment tbf.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
There doesn't seem to be a procedure. Taking it to the most senior person you can find seems like a sensible course of action in those circumstances.
And anyway, there is no correct way for victims to respond to these situaitons or to seek recourse. They correct thing would be for people not to commit acts of abuse. Beyond that, victims should be supported no matter what course of action they choose.
I very much doubt you would disagree with any of that, but it's worth saying anyway.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
Ha, this explains all those prosecutions of coppers who have violated the human rights of arrestees by leaking their details to the press when there is no public interest reason for them to do so.
What about the human rights of this person's co-workers, or their constituents?
not-bono-ever
meh
the cops
andysays
Love and solidarity
It's starting to look like it needs a whole section within parliament.
General question - who are parliamentary researchers etc actually employed by, is it by the party or MP they work for, or by Parliament itself?
But that imagines political parties and the people who work for them to be something other than they actually are. I'd imagine the complainant - being a tory staffer - complained internally in the first instance because she didn't want a massive party-damaging fallout, just something done about it. Even with an external ombudsman or similar, most complaints would most likely still be initially internal because of the bonds of party loyalty that most party staff feel.
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