Senior female Conservatives have called for an investigation into allegations of drunken groping against former deputy chief whip Christopher Pincher and for the party whip to be withdrawn from the MP until inquiries conclude.
Former ministers Karen Bradley and Caroline Nokes said that the same procedure should be followed in every case of sexual minsconduct, in order for the party to avoid “serious reputational damage”.
Following Mr Pincher’s dramatic resignation on Thursday night, the pair wrote to Tory chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris urging him to adopt a “zero tolerance” approach to misbehaviour and to draw up a code of conduct to be followed by all of the party’s MPs.
They voiced concern that allegations of sexual misconduct have been dealt with by the party in an “inconsistent and unclear” way, with some MPs thrown during an investigation of complaints while others are allowed to stay on.
Despite quitting his government job in disgrace, Mr Pincher is so far facing no investigation by the Conservative Party into his behaviour and has not been stripped of the Tory whip in parliament.
Ms Bradley and Ms Nokes, who respectively chair the House of Commons committees for procedure and women and equalities, said: “Recent incidents have demonstrated an inconsistent and unclear approach by the party to instances of sexual misconduct.
“The party, and by extension the government, are at risk of serious reputational damage by the current approach.”
A code of conduct for all Tory MPs, to be introduced soon, should be “clear in terms of the expectations of behaviour and which can be applied in a fair, independent manner so as to avoid any suspicion of bias”.
In the meantime, they urged the chief whip to employ a “zero tolerance” approach to the issue and ensure a thorough investigation is carried out in every case, with the party whip suspended and MPs told to stay away from parliament while inquiries take place.
“Once an investigation is completed, a decision should be taken about returning the whip, but in the meantime anyone subject to such and investigation should not be allowed to sit as a Conservative MP and represent the party in any capacity,” they said.
