A potential Tory candidate for London mayor has denied allegations that he groped a woman while working as an adviser in No10.
Daisy Goodwin, an author and TV producer, has accused Daniel Korski of grabbing her breast while he worked as a special adviser to then Prime Minister David Cameron.
The alleged incident is said to have happened when the pair met in Downing Street to discuss a potential TV show focusing on how the Government had supported small and medium-sized businesses to export to the world.
Writing for The Times, Ms Goodwin said she felt “surprise and some humiliation” following the alleged incident.
A spokesperson for Mr Korski told The Times: “In the strongest possible terms, Dan categorically denies any allegation of inappropriate behaviour whatsoever.”
The Standard has contacted Mr Korski for further comment.
Footage posted on social media showed Mr Korski leaving a Tory hustings on Monday night, though it was unclear whether this was related to the publication of Ms Goodwin’s claims.
Ms Goodwin first spoke about the incident in 2017 but did not name her alleged groper.
Mr Korski is competing against Susan Hall and Moz Hossain for the Tory nomination, with a winner due to be announced on July 19. More than 20,000 London Tories are entitled to vote in the leadership election.
He has never held elected office, having been neither an MP nor councillor.
Mr Korski, 46, said the Ulez extension “has to be junked” and also promised a review of cycle superhighways and potentially requiring a “confirmatory vote” of residents before new low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) schemes are made permanent.
Speaking to the Standard earlier this month, Mr Korski said he had left Downing Street seven years ago with an “itch to build businesses”.
He described Mayor of London Sadiq Khan as a “‘doom-meister’ that spins off his Twitter account more and more negative things about the city for his own political end”.
And he claimed the Ulez expansion to Greater London – due to happen on August 29, assuming Mr Khan is not defeated at the High Court – “absolutely has to be junked”.
He said: “The reason is very simple. It’s a money-making initiative. It isn’t intended to really clean the air or address CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions. There is a tiny proportion of diesel cars on the road. They will get off the road in the next couple of years anyway. The number is so small it’s simply not credible to believe it has a massive impact on health in the city.”
Mr Korski has also proposed a minimum digital literacy standard, requiring pupils to take ICT (information and communication technology) at GSCE and helping adults to become computer-literate.
