Inside Politics: Shifting position

Boris Johnson given ‘first hand’ account of allegations against Pincher before promoting him, writes Matt Mathers

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Rafael Nadal rolled back the years on Centre Court last night to record a straight-sets victory over Botic van de Zandschulp and advance to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon. Is Boris Johnson facing another break point in the Pincher affair? We report that he was given a first-hand account of allegations against the Tamworth MP before promoting him. A separate story says Johnson was made aware of a formal complaint against Pincher in 2019.

Inside the bubble

Our chief politics commentator John Rentoul on what to look out for:

The cabinet will meet this morning. The Commons sits at 11.30 starting with justice questions to Dominic Raab, followed by a debate on Department for Work and Pensions spending and a vote on the windfall tax on oil and gas companies. Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner, will give evidence to the Education Committee. Ben Wallace, defence secretary, will face questions from the Defence Committee about shipbuilding.

Daily Briefing

New line

An increasingly familiar and depressing pattern came to its logical conclusion yesterday as No 10 admitted that the PM was in fact aware of concerns about the conduct of Chris Pincher MP, who was forced to resign as deputy chief whip last week after being accused of drunkenly groping two men at a private members club for Tories in central London. Downing Street initially said Johnson was not aware of any specific allegations regarding the Tamworth MP.

Following a weekend of denials, a string of fresh allegations about Pincher (all denied) and two ministers going out on the broadcast round making themselves look a bit silly, Johnson’s official spokesman said the PM did know about media reports and some allegations regarding Pincher, but that they were all either resolved or did not lead to a formal complaint. Therefore, Downing Street insists, it was OK to promote him to the deputy chief whip role in February.

The story is not going away and the PM continues to face major questions about his judgement in giving Pincher, his friend and close ally, a role that not only involved party discipline, but also pastoral care towards other MPs. We report today that Johnson was given a “first-hand account” of inappropriate sexual behaviour by Pincher before his appointment. The PM was told about specific claims against the Tory MP on at least two occasions, according to a senior Downing Street source. No 10 declined to comment on both alleged conversations.

The BBC, meanwhile, reports that Johnson was made aware of a formal complaint about Pincher’s “inappropriate behaviour” while the Tamworth MP was a Foreign Office minister from 2019-20. It triggered a disciplinary process that confirmed the MP’s misconduct, the BBC says, adding that Dominic Raab, the justice secretary and deputy PM – foreign secretary at the time – knew about it. Luckily enough, Raab is out on the broadcast round this morning and gave his account of what unfolded.

He told Times Radio that a complaint was made in October 2019 and he raised it with officials at the Foreign Office and to the Cabinet Office ethics and propriety team. “I also spoke to Chris Pincher to make sure the behaviour was not repeated,” he said. “I also, for assurance and to make sure we had taken the most rigorous approach, referred the matter to the Cabinet Office ethics and propriety team who looked at it and they confirmed there wasn’t a case for proceeding under the Ministerial Code. We followed the processes – I did – to the letter, in fact beyond what was recommended.”

So what impact is the latest scandal having on the dynamics at the top of government? Reports say that cabinet ministers, none of them brave enough to resign, are becoming increasingly exasperated at Downing Street’s inability to get on with the job, and are again raising questions about the latest “reset” of the No 10 “core team”, which was, at least in part, supposed to improve the communications operation. The events of the past few days once again suggest that is far from the case. Johnson was back in the Commons yesterday following his trips abroad, giving a statement to MPs on the Nato and G7 summits, in which he appeared to row back on a pledge to increase defence spending. Is this the business of government Tory ministers want to get back to?

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Protests

Priti Patel has urged police to use new powers to shut down protests after fuel price campaigners held up highways around the country.

At least 13 protesters were arrested on Monday for driving too slowly when blocking roads in a call for fuel duty to be slashed to slow the soaring cost of filling up a car. The so-called “go-slow” protests spread across Britain’s road network. Most of the arrests took place on the M4 though drivers also protested on the M54, M62, A38 and several other roads.

Controversial new laws which came into effect on 28 June give police increased powers to deal with protests deemed to be causing serious disruption. The laws were introduced in response to Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain environmental protests which blocked roads en masse.

Along with giving police greater powers of dispersal, the government has increased penalties for protesters. While “Wilful obstruction of the highway” used to be punishable by a maximum fine of £50, it now carries up to a six month prison sentence and/or an unlimited fine.

After a day of 30mph traffic on the motorways, Priti Patel was reportedly moved to remind police of their new powers.

On the record

“The prime minister was aware of media reports that others had seen over the years and some allegations that were either resolved or did not progress to a formal complaint.”

No 10 spokesman admits Johnson was aware of reports about suspended MP Pincher.

From the Twitterati

“I’m not saying Boris has quite reached the end yet, but his wife briefing against him is probably not a good sign.”

Journalist Sam Freedman pokes fun at reports Carrie Johnson openly questioned Pincher’s suitability as whip in 2017.

Essential reading

• Marie Le Conte, The Independent: Don’t tax the childless – 30-year-olds like me can’t afford to have kids
• Tom Peck, The Independent: Boris Johnson’s ministers would rather keep degrading themselves than do the obvious
• William Hague, The Times: Starmer is right to say Brexit won’t be reversed
• Tom McTague, The Atlantic: America’s necessary myth for the world

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