The whip issued a statement Wednesday proposing that the matter be referred to Parliament’s Independent Complaints and Appeals System (ICGS), which deals with sexual harassment and other disciplinary matters. But senior Tories have questioned why he did not take direct action against the MP, whose alleged behavior has been monitored by two colleagues in recent months. The identity of the MP is known in the party whips, as it is understood, but sources refuted assumptions that the MP was the whip himself. A cabinet minister described the situation as “insane everywhere”, while Caroline Nokes, chairwoman of the Committee on Women and Equality, said: “I hope the leader withdraws the whip. “In any other workplace it would be on a gardening license.” Chris Heaton-Harris, the leader of the whip, was present at a meeting of the “2022 Committee” – a group of Tory women – earlier this week, when a number of incidents were described, including the MP watching pornography. On Thursday, Labor leader Keir Starmer called on Johnson to bypass the potentially lengthy ICGS process and discipline the MP directly. “This is an unusual case because the Tories party knows who this person is. I think they have to deal with it, and deal with it sooner rather than later… They know who he is. “They have to take action now,” he said. Hypocrisy and sexism in parliament have come under scrutiny in recent days, following strong criticism from Mail on Sunday that Tory lawmakers believed Labor deputy leader Angela Reiner had crossed her legs. to distract Johnson from the prime minister’s questions. Asked if the MP accused of pornography surveillance should lose the whip, the prime minister insisted on Thursday that the case should be investigated independently. It was “obviously unacceptable for anyone to do such a thing in the workplace” but “what needs to happen now is that the proper procedures have to go through, the independent grievance process has to be activated and you have to understand the facts,” Johnson said. . A whip office spokesman said: “This is the best way to handle this, because they can see everything fairly, independently. “This is the best process we can have to deal with this issue.” At least five cabinet ministers have expressed private or public concern about the reports. Earlier in the day, Attorney General Suela Braverman said some lawmakers behaved like “animals” and spoke of “refining” behavior in parliament and elsewhere. “I think this is something that happens in many, if not all, workplaces where a small minority of men – and they are men – behave in an unacceptable way,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. “I think this is actually a more worrying symptom of our society and culture. “How did we get to a place in our society where the viewing of pornography on the subway, in public, in front of children, in parliament, in the workplace has become somewhat normalized for some people?” Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am Nadine Dorries, Secretary of Culture, told the BBC: “I’m been here for a long time and I think it ‘s actually getting worse [for female MPs] . I always thought that, if more women came in… things would get better, but unfortunately I do not see that happening at the moment. I think we just need to have the majority of women maybe. So it’s just frustrating. “ Sajid Javid, the Minister of Health, said: “There have been several cases of inappropriate and sexist behavior in parliament recently. Its a shame. Members are civil servants and it is their duty to set an example of character and integrity. “Westminster’s culture needs to change.”
