Chris Pincher dramatically quit as Tory deputy chief whip last week over allegations he groped two men at a Conservative private members’ club.
Over the weekend, details emerged in the press of further claims about alleged sexual advances to men – including two fellow Conservative MPs – over a period of years.
Here is a timeline of Mr Pincher’s political career and the allegations, which Mr Pincher has denied to the newspapers which carried them.
– May 2010: Mr Pincher is first elected Conservative MP for Tamworth in Staffordshire.
– 2012: A man alleges he was subjected to an unwanted advance from Mr Pincher when he was in his early 20s at an event in London, according to The Mail on Sunday.
– 2013: The same newspaper reported that a former parliamentary researcher alleges Mr Pincher threatened to report her to her boss after she tried to stop him pestering a young man at that year’s Conservative Party conference.
– 2013: A young man who had passed out at Mr Pincher’s flat after an evening of drinking allegedly wakes up to find the MP “on top of him”, a friend reportedly told The Sun.
– July 2016: Mr Pincher is appointed to the whips office by then-Prime Minister Theresa May.
– November 5, 2017: Mr Pincher resigns and refers himself to the police and the Conservative Party complaints procedure after the former Olympic rower and Tory activist claims Alex Story claimed he had made an unwanted sexual advance nine years previously.
Mr Story, who was a young Tory activist at the time, alleged that the MP untucked the back of his shirt, massaged his neck and whispered: “You’ll go far in the Tory Party”.
In a separate incident, Mr Pincher is also reported to have made an inappropriate advance towards the former Labour MP Tom Blenkinsop.
– 2017: Weeks after his resignation, Mr Pincher allegedly makes an unwanted pass at a junior Tory backbencher, according to The Sunday Times.
– December 23, 2017: A Conservative Party investigating panel clears Mr Pincher of any breach of party rules.
– January 9, 2018: Mr Pincher is appointed as the Government deputy chief whip by Theresa May.
That year a young Conservative MP is said to have received an unwanted physical advance by the Tamworth MP in his parliamentary office, according to The Sunday Times.
Mr Pincher is also alleged to have made an unsolicited sexual approach towards a charity fundraiser at his constituency office, The Sun reported.
– July 2019: Boris Johnson appoints Mr Pincher a foreign minister for Europe and the Americas in his first reshuffle after taking office as prime minister.
Around this time, he is alleged to have made an unwanted advance towards a young Tory activist after inviting him for drinks in his Tamworth constituency, according to The Sunday Times.
– Autumn 2019: Mr Pincher allegedly makes an unwanted advance to a Conservative member in his 20s at a bar during the party’s annual conference in Manchester, The Times reported.
– February 13, 2020: Mr Pincher is appointed Housing Minister.
– 2021: Mr Pincher allegedly makes a pass at a young Tory activist during the Tory party conference in Manchester, according to The Times.
The Mail on Sunday reported that a young Conservative activist is “touched up” by Mr Pincher in a car.
A Conservative MP claims he was groped repeatedly by Mr Pincher near the Carlton Club in December, as well as in June this year within the parliamentary estate, according to The Independent.
– February 8, 2022: Mr Pincher is appointed deputy chief whip alongside new chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris after they ran a shadow whipping operation to shore up support for Mr Johnson as MPs sought to oust him over the Partygate allegations.
The announcement of Mr Pincher’s appointment is delayed while the Cabinet Office propriety and ethics team carry out checks but no reason is found for it not to go ahead.
– June 30, 2022: Mr Pincher resigns as deputy chief whip after allegedly assaulting two fellow guests at the Carlton Club – a Tory Party private members’ club in London’s Piccadilly – the evening before.
– July 1, 2022: The Conservative whip is suspended from Mr Pincher after a formal complaint is made to Parliament’s watchdog that examines allegations of bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct.
The Prime Minister bows after nearly 24 hours of pressure to act against Mr Pincher, suspending the whip while an investigation is ongoing.
