Westminster was plunged into a brand new ‘intercourse pest’ row final night time after a Labour backbencher named 20 colleagues in an alleged ‘sexual harassment listing’.
Charlotte Nichols sparked fury from some fellow parliamentarians for posting it on a WhatsApp group understood for use by Labour MPs who, like her, have been elected in 2019.
One senior determine who claimed to have seen the listing stated that in addition to politicians who had beforehand confronted harassment claims, it included a distinguished Tory by no means publicly {accused} earlier than.
Yesterday, Ms Nichols stated the listing had been despatched ‘with out context’ and with no particular allegations.
LIST MAKER: Labour MP Charlotte Nichols
However she confirmed it contained the names of MPs with a sex-pest repute.
The MP for Warrington North additionally stated that she stood by each title, including that for the ‘much less well-known’ she herself had ‘first-hand expertise of their behaviour’.
She added that she had since deleted the put up as she had despatched it to a selected WhatsApp group by mistake.
However final night time, different MPs privately vented their anger at her actions.
One senior Labour determine stated: ‘In the event you imagine you have got proof that X, Y or Z is a fallacious ‘un, then truthful sufficient. However you’ll be able to’t simply put names out like this.’
Westminster (pictured) was plunged into a brand new ‘intercourse pest’ row final night time over the WhatsApp listing
A Tory MP stated it was ‘grossly irresponsible’ to put up such a listing on a WhatsApp group: ‘You probably have proof, you report it to the parliamentary authorities or the police.’
Final yr, Ms Nichols claimed she had been the sufferer of sexual misconduct at the very least a dozen occasions since coming into Parliament. She stopped in need of naming the alleged culprits however stated they have been from completely different events and a few have been senior.
In November she additionally instructed BBC Radio 5 Reside that ‘after I first got here into Parliament a gaggle of individuals I knew gave me a listing of MPs… whom I ought to attempt to keep away from so far as potential to maintain myself secure’.
Ms Nichols denied final night time that she’d been irresponsible in her actions, saying: ‘What’s irresponsible is the shortage of actual motion to kind out Westminster’s sexual harassment downside, which is so endemic different MPs need to be warned about colleagues’ behaviour.’
