Will Pinchergate MP avoid investigation?
THE Tory MP in the sex scandal that led to Boris Johnson’s resignation could escape a parliamentary probe, it was feared last night.
Sources raised concerns that Chris Pincher, ho was accused of groping two men, could avoid a formal investigation by Westminster watchdogs because the alleged assault took place off the parliamentary estate.
One Commons insider claimed that Westminster’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) had already rejected one accusation against the ex-Deputy Chief Whip on those grounds.
However, the source said that ruling had been appealed against.
Mr Pincher, 52, resigned as Deputy Chief Whip in June after being accused of groping a man more than 20 years his junior at London’s exclusive Carlton Club. In his resignation letter to then Prime Minister Mr Johnson, Tamworth MP Mr Pincher said he ‘drank far too much’ and ‘embarrassed myself and other people’.
Downing Street initially said he would face no further action from the party, which meant he could remain a Conservative MP.
But a day later, Mr Pincher was suspended from the party amid a furore about how he had been made Deputy Chief Whip in the first place. Mr Johnson’s handling of the affair – including his admission that he had known of a previous complaint against Mr Pincher – prompted the Cabinet resignations that led to the Premier’s downfall.
However, The Mail on Sunday was told that at least one formal investigation into the allegations against Mr Pincher at the Carlton Club, spiritual home of the Tory Party, had now been ruled out.
Sources said that was because the alleged incidents took place away from the parliamentary estate. A
Commons spokesperson said last night: ‘We cannot confirm or deny any investigations. The ICGS operates on the basis of confidentiality for the benefit of all parties.
‘Therefore, we cannot provide any information on complaints or investigations, including whether a complaint has been received or an investigation is ongoing.’
Mr Pincher, who has denied a series of claims of inappropriate behaviour, was approached for comment.