Tory MP says she's faced 50 'creepy' incidents in Westminster

Caroline Nokes says she’s been subject to around 50 ‘creepy’ incidents in Westminster – including fellow MPs ‘patting’ her backside or putting their hands on her thighs – as Tory ex-minister reveals she avoids certain politicians in lifts

• Romsey and Southport North MP speaks about her own ‘Pestminster’ incidents

Tory former minister Caroline Nokes has revealed she’s been subject to around 50 ‘creepy’ incidents in Westminster amid fresh scrutiny of parliamentary sleaze.

The Romsey and Southport North MP, who has been in Parliament since 2010, recalled how a member of the House of Lords ‘stroked my bare arm’.

She also claimed a Labour MP ‘patted me on the backside’, other MPs had ‘put their hands on my thigh’, and admitted she avoids getting into lifts with certain people.

Ms Nokes, who is chair of the House of Commons’ Womens and Equalities Committee, spoke about her own experience following a renewed bout of ‘Pestminster’ allegations.

She demanded Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attend the Commons when MPs consider a proposed eight-week suspension for Tamworth MP Chris Pincher, after he was found to have groped two men at a London club last year.

‘That would be a really strong signal that he’s not going to tolerate it,’ Ms Nokes told the BBC’s Newsnight show.

Tory former minister Caroline Nokes has revealed she’s been subject to around 50 ‘creepy’ incidents in Westminster amid fresh scrutiny of parliamentary sleaze

Ms Nokes, who is chair of the Womens and Equalities Committee, demanded Rishi Sunak attend the Commons when MPs consider an eight-week suspension for Chris Pincher

Mr Pincher, the Tamworth MP, has been recommended for an eight-week suspension for drunkenly groping two men

Asked on the programme how many ‘inappropriate or weird or creepy’ incidents she herself had been subjected to during her time as an MP, Ms Nokes replied: ‘Definitely more than 20, probably in the region of 50.

‘I can think of an incident where a member of the House of Lords, in a restaurant, said hello to me, walked past, turned around, came back and stroked my bare arm in the presence of a journalist.

‘I can think of other incidents where a Labour MP patted me on the backside and told me that I’ve done well to lose weight.

‘Now he, in that instance, looked about as shocked as I did, and clearly instantly regretted what he’d done.

‘But other incidents, where colleagues have put their hands on my thigh and told me at great length, how their wives don’t understand them. It’s just horrific.’

Asked if there were certain people she avoided when getting into lifts at Westminster, Ms Nokes said: ‘There are.

‘What I think is really telling is that female MPs will support each other, will provide information to each other as to who to trust, who not to trust, who we think is a little bit creepy.’

Despite the increasing number of women in the Commons, Ms Nokes said there was still a ‘really laddish culture where the “banter” defence is used – “oh well, she just can’t take a bit of banter”.

‘It’s just not acceptable in the 21st century workplace,’ she added.

Earlier this week, a male MP was accused of repeatedly asking a young female aide to ‘come sit on my lap’ as officials expressed concern about a ‘predatory culture’.

Ellie Varley, who works for Tory minister Dehenna Davison, spoke out as she claimed fellow parliamentary staff ‘don’t have trust in the system’ for reporting issues.

Meanwhile a senior official, who worked in the Commons for several years, was quoted as saying the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) set up in 2018 had made no difference to what they described as a ‘predatory culture’.

Downing Street this week admitted Parliament has ‘a long way to go’ to crackdown on misconduct – although No10 insisted there was ‘not fundamentally’ a toxic environment.

Mr Pincher has been recommended for an eight-week suspension for drunkenly groping two men.

Parliament’s Standards Committee said in a report that the MP’s conduct last summer was ‘profoundly damaging’ and ‘especially grave’ because it amounted to an abuse of power.

The committee upheld allegations Mr Pincher ‘groped’ two men at London’s exclusive Carlton Club while he was the Conservative deputy chief whip, in a scandal that hastened Boris Johnson’s downfall as PM.

Mr Pincher’s actions in June last year were described as ‘unwanted, inappropriate and upsetting’, in what amounted to an ‘egregious case of sexual misconduct’.

Ms Nokes demanded that Mr Sunak publicly back the committee’s report when it is considered by the Commons.

Pushed on whether Mr Sunak should be in the Commons when Mr Pincher’s case is considered, she said: ‘I think the Prime Minister could do that for us.

‘I think that would be a really strong signal that he’s not going to tolerate it, and that would send a message to the chief (whip): get this sorted.’

The PM was absent for Commons votes on other disciplinary matters, including the report on whether Mr Johnson lied to Parliament over Partygate. 

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