A NEWLY appointed Tory minister has doubled down on claims that Angela Rayner “opened her legs” in the Commons to distract Boris Johnson.
In a BBC interview on Sunday, Lia Nici, the new Levelling Up Minister, repeated allegations that were made against Labour’s shadow cabinet office minister while discussing “honesty” and “integrity”.
During the BBC Politics North programme, the Grimsby MP said: "Let's just be honest here. We talk about honesty and integrity.
"The deputy shadow leader decided it would be amusing to open her legs in the chamber and then brag to everybody that actually it was male members of the opposite party who had been looking at her and she was drinking on the terrace and laughing about it."
The @Conservatives are mired in cover-ups of sexual misconduct. So this newly appointed Tory Minister @lia_nici spreads smears that @AngelaRayner “opened her legs in Parliament” to distract @BorisJohnson. She’s not fit to hold her ministerial office. pic.twitter.com/idmhZaHjyI
— Naz Shah MP 💙 (@NazShahBfd) July 10, 2022
Nici made her comments in a conversation with Labour Bradford West MP Naz Shah, who replied: "I don't know what's more disappointing Lia, Listening to a fellow woman talk about another woman opening her legs in Parliament using that kind of misogynistic language, or the whataboutery to actually try and take it away from the failure of this government not just now, but for the last 12 years of austerity."
She later tweeted a clip of the conversation, saying: "The Conservatives are mired in cover-ups of sexual misconduct. So this newly appointed Tory Minister @lia_nici spreads smears that @AngelaRayner “opened her legs in Parliament” to distract @BorisJohnson. She’s not fit to hold her ministerial office."
The original accusation was made earlier this year in a Mail on Sunday article which contained an allegation from an anonymous Tory MP who said that Rayner had opened her legs in Parliament to catch Johnson’s attention.
In response to the story, Rayner said the claims were a “perverted smear” that highlighted the struggle women in politics face on a daily basis.
And Boris Johnson said the allegations were “the most appalling load of sexist, misogynist tripe” and that he would unleash the “terrors of the Earth” upon the Tory MP responsible for making the claim.
Since the broadcast of Nici's comments, Rayner has responded to a clip of the conversation on Twitter.
Boris Johnson promised to unleash “the terrors of the earth” on the Tory MPs spreading these vile smears. Instead he promoted them to ministerial office. They really are unfit to govern. Thank you @NazShahBfd for calling @lia_nici out on this. She should be ashamed of herself. https://t.co/YfUbpmgIFH
— Angela Rayner 🌹 (@AngelaRayner) July 10, 2022
She wrote: "Boris Johnson promised to unleash 'the terrors of the earth' on the Tory MPs spreading these vile smears. Instead he promoted them to ministerial office. They really are unfit to govern. Thank you @NazShahBfd for calling @lia_nici out on this. She should be ashamed of herself.”
