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A Conservative MP has been arrested on suspicion of rape and sexual assault, the party confirmed on Tuesday.
The MP, who has not been named, has been asked to avoid parliament, pending an investigation by the Metropolitan police’s central specialist crime unit.
News of the arrest was first reported in the Sun newspaper, which identified the individual as a Tory MP.
“A man, aged in his 50s, was arrested on suspicion of indecent assault, sexual assault, rape, abuse of position of trust and misconduct in public office,” the Met said in a statement. The police have not confirmed the identity of the man currently in custody.
In January 2020, the Met received a report relating to alleged sexual offences committed during a seven-year period between 2002 and 2009, the force said.
“The offences are alleged to have occurred in London,” the force added. “An investigation is ongoing, led by officers from central specialist crime.”
Government insiders have said the party is unlikely to name the individual in question while the investigation continues.
“The chief whip has asked that the MP concerned does not attend the parliamentary estate while an investigation is ongoing,” a spokesperson from the Conservative party whips office said on Tuesday. “Until the conclusion of the investigation we will not be commenting further,” they said.
News of the arrest follows widespread concerns about sexual harassment and misconduct within Westminster.
Last month, Neil Parish, a Conservative MP and former chair of the environment, food and rural affairs select committee, resigned after admitting that he had watched pornography while in the House of Commons chamber.
Imran Ahmad Khan, the Tory MP for Wakefield in West Yorkshire was also forced to step down in April after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in 2008. The 48-year-old, who became an MP in the 2019 general election, was convicted under Section 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
Meanwhile, David Warburton, the Conservative MP for Somerton and Frome, was suspended from the party last month following misconduct allegations. An investigation by parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme into the matter is ongoing.
Unions have called for tougher action against individuals accused of misconduct.
“This news comes just weeks after an MP was found guilty of sexual abuse against a child and is the latest in a series of arrests and convictions of politicians for sexual offences,” argued Garry Graham, deputy general secretary of the trade union Prospect.
He added: “What will it take for parliament to finally take its responsibility to its staff and visitors seriously and suspend access to the estate for parliamentarians under investigation for sexual offences?”
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