Sex text Tory MP was made a minister despite probe over his ‘inappropriate touching’
A TORY MP forced to resign as a minister after sending hundreds of sexually explicit messages to two women was previously accused of inappropriately touching a local councillor.
Andrew Griffiths, 47, was investigated for allegedly putting his hand on Deneice Florence-Jukes’ knee and clutching her waist at a fundraising ball, it emerged yesterday.
The MP was also accused of bullying Mrs Florence-Jukes and other local politicians from his party, but was cleared following an investigation.
He stood down as minister for small business at the weekend after it emerged he had sent more than 2,000 texts to the two barmaids. They included discussions of sexual violence and were sent only weeks after his wife Kate, 47, gave birth to their long-awaited first child.
Mr Griffiths has so far resisted calls to stand down as an MP, despite a petition being set up demanding he quit the seat in Burton and Uttoxeter in Staffordshire, and a protest planned for Saturday.
But the fresh allegations will heap further pressure on him to stand down.
Mrs Florence-Jukes, a councillor on East Staffordshire Borough Council, said his bullying left her ‘completely humiliated’ and forced her to quit the Tory party. She now sits as an independent.
‘He portrays himself as a man who is pro-women but he isn’t at all,’ she told the Daily Mail. ‘In fact, I don’t think he likes women very much – he certainly doesn’t have any respect for them.’ She said Mr Griffiths was ‘very forward’ when he touched her knee and clutched her waist at the ball at Uttoexter racecourse in September 2016.
She made a formal complaint to Conservative Campaign Headquarters.
In her complaint, she told how he came over to her table and she told him that she aspired to become an MP.
‘His hand was on my knee for a few seconds, then he removed it. I felt [Griffiths] was being very forward by touching me,’ she said. ‘My guests even commented on what they had witnessed.’
The councillor added: ‘[Griffiths] is far too familiar with regards to inappropriate touching. I feel it crosses boundaries by him touching my knee, holding me around the waist. It got to the point where I would keep a distance and bend forwards so I was out of his reach.’
Her complaint was referred to the party’s sexual harassment hotline and an investigation was launched. It was ongoing when Mr Griffiths, formerly Theresa May’s chief of staff, was appointed small business minister in January.
It is understood an independent investigation was carried out and the complaint was dismissed by a panel of QCs after Mr Griffiths said it was ‘implausible’ he would touch a colleague’s knee in a room full of people.
He admitted putting his arm around her waist but said it was because she was tall and her husband had his hand over her back.
Mrs Florence-Jukes, a former military police officer, quit the party in February over its handling of the complaint.
Separately it has emerged other Tory colleagues have also previously accused Mr Griffiths of bullying.
Activist John Wheatley, his campaign manager for last year’s election, said he alerted senior members of the East Staffordshire Conservatives ‘when I realised what sort of man I was working for’.
Mr Wheatley told the Mail: ‘I was verbally abused and sworn at on a regular basis. He was generally just a nasty piece of work. Simply put, he was a bully through and through.’ He said Mr Griffiths made ‘sexual comments’ about female colleagues.
Richard Grosvenor, the leader of East Staffordshire Borough Council, told the Guardian that Mr Griffiths’ ‘extreme bullying’ had continued for ‘many years’.
He said he complained to the party but no action was taken. He said: ‘He needs to seriously consider resigning.’
Mr Griffiths did not respond to request for comment to the latest allegations. He has apologised over the texts, which started after he watched sexy videos the woman had posted on social media. He called himself ‘Daddy’ and paid them £700 to send him explicit pictures.
The messages included threats such as: ‘I want her to tie you up and beat that gorgeous big a** while Daddy watches.’
Mr Griffiths was back at work yesterday.
A Conservative spokesman said: ‘The panel came to a clear decision and no further action was taken.’
‘Completely humiliated’