Disgraced Tory MP Chris Pincher claimed up to £8,000 in lost earnings after ‘groping’ scandal
Member of Parliament for Tamworth Christopher Pincher. (Getty Images/Thierry Monasse)
Chris Pincher, the Conservative MP who resigned from a senior government role over sexual misconduct allegations, has claimed for thousands of lost earnings.
The former deputy chief whip, who stepped down from his role in June this year, has claimed “a severance payment” worth up to £8,000, The Times has revealed.
In his role as deputy chief whip, Pincher was paid a ministerial salary of £31,680.
Ministers are entitled to loss of office payments of a quarter of their yearly salary, meaning he was entitled to around £8,000. However, the Treasury did not confirm if Pincher claimed the full amount.
The Times reported that there is no suggestion Pincher’s claim breached any rules.
Deputy leader of the Labour Party, Angela Rayner, told the newspaper: “Another disgraced former Tory minister has walked away with thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money.
“If he had a shred of decency he could have refused this payment. The right thing to do now would be to resign his seat and force a by-election.”
What happened to Chris Pincher?
Chris Pincher’s disgraceful history helped contribute to the downfall of former prime minister Boris Johnson’s time in office.
In 2017 Pincher resigned as an assistant whip having been accused of sexual misconduct by Tory activist Alex Story.
Two years later he was brought back into government by Johnson and became a foreign office minister, then a housing minister.
In February this year he was made deputy chief whip, despite Johnson reportedly being aware of a second allegation of inappropriate behaviour made against Pincher in 2019, which was being investigated.
Downing Street insisted for days Johnson did not know of any previous accusations against Pincher.
It later emerged that Johnson knew of the 2019 complaint which led to a wave of resignations in all ranks of the government and the breakdown of Johnson’s premiership.
The latest incident occurred at the Conservative Party’s private members’ club, The Carlton, on 29 June this year where Pincher was accused by two men of drunkly groping them.
The Sunday Times reported allegations that Derbyshire Dales MP Sarah Dines witnessed the alleged assault that took place. She reportedly went on to question if one of the victims was gay.
MP resigned after ’embarrassing’ himself
Chris Pincher resigned in June after an investigation into the incident. In his resignation letter to Johnson, Pincher said he had “drank far too much” and “embarrassed myself and other people”.
Pincher was first elected as MP for Tamworth in 2010 and served as a minister under former PM Theresa May. He abstained from voting for extending the same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland in 2019.
Whips are responsible for discipling their party and ensuring their MPs vote in line with their party.
PinkNews has contacted the Cabinet Office, Pincher and LGBT+ Labour for comment.
