Theresa May And A Naughty Tory

A quick perusal of That Spreadsheet - compiled by someone in the Tory Party and noting the behavioural, shall we say, eccentricities of its MPs, shows that former MP for Dover Charlie Elphicke is one of those named. The comments against his name say simply “Inappropriate with female researchers”. Just what that meant was spelt out this morning at Southwark Crown Court when Elphicke was convicted of sexual assault.

Charlie Elphicke

As the BBC has reported, Elphicke “denied groping the women in similar situations nine years apart. He was convicted of one count of sexual assault in 2007, and two further counts against a second woman in 2016. His wife Natalie Elphicke, the current Dover MP, said her husband's actions have ended their marriage. He will be sentenced in September”. We learned “There is a very real possibility he faces immediate custody”.

The Beeb’s report also told “Elphicke's trial heard he had lunged at a woman, aged in her 30s, at his London home in 2007 on the first night his wife was away after the birth of their son. He forced his victim on to a sofa and groped her breast while trying to kiss her, before chasing her and chanting ‘I'm a naughty Tory’”. What a creep. And there was more.

“In 2016 he twice sexually assaulted a parliamentary worker aged in her 20s, first attempting to kiss the woman and grope her breast. ‘He had his mouth open, continually trying to kiss me,’ his victim told the court. ‘It was like a disgusting, slobbery mess.’ In the second assault several weeks later, he ran his hand up the inside of her thigh towards her groin”. Proper Donald Trump fan and no mistake.

That much is bad enough, but then a thought enters: if Elphicke’s name was on That Spreadsheet, then senior party figures would have known he was a creep. But that did not stop him having the whip restored in late 2018, as the Guardian reported at the time: “Two Conservative MPs who had the party whip removed after being accused of sexually inappropriate conduct will be allowed to vote in Wednesday’s crucial ballot to decide whether to sack Theresa May”. One of those two was Elphicke.

On the Labour benches, there was a united front displayed against Elphicke’s reinstatement, merely so Theresa May could save her own skin. Dawn Butler called her action “a betrayal of women” while Jess Phillips said it was “totally despicable”, adding “When Theresa May said she wanted parliament and politics to change, she lied”.

Writing in the Independent, Sean O’Grady observed “There is no parliamentary or Conservative Party rule that links suspension to events of national significance. It was surely on the discretion of the whips, and presumably with the knowledge of the party hierarchy - party chair, chief whip, leader. In any case, it was a disgrace. Not the greatest disgrace we’ve seen in the palace of Westminster this year, but a pretty grubby little business nonetheless”. Would Ms May’s successor have done differently? I doubt it.

Charlie Elphicke, contrary to some press reports, is not merely “naughty”. He’s a creep, a serial sex pest and will be expected to have to sign the sex offenders’ register. He shouldn’t have been let loose in the Palace of Westminster, and when the Tories knew what he was like, most certainly should not have had the whip restored.

But that is what the Tories get up to in the 21st Century. Some parties never change.

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