• “Denied fair hearing” • Wife speaks out • Cocaine use admitted • ICGS still to report on investigation
A by-election is to be held in Frome following David Warburton’s resignation as MP. He says he is stepping down after being denied a fair hearing by a 14- month investigation into allegations of misconduct, which is still ongoing.
The news has been welcomed by some residents of Frome who say they have been without ‘proper representation’ in Parliament since the allegations were made and he was suspended from the Conservative Party in April last year, pending the outcome of the investigation. The Parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) is investigating allegations of misconduct. He had been accused of drug use – which he later admitted – and sexual harassment of two women, which he continues to deny.
In his three-page resignation letter, David Warburton said, “The last fourteen months have been extraordinarily difficult as I have sought to fight malicious allegations in two connected investigations, leaving my constituents with less than the full representation in Parliament that they deserve. “Those making the allegations have been allowed full rein and received no reprimand for treating the confidentiality of the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme with contempt. While they have published their claims across the media, I have been prevented by the ICGS from speaking out. I have also been barred – on pain of sanction – from revealing anything of the flawed investigation itself, as it moves at a cripplingly glacial pace towards a predetermined conclusion. “I have been prevented from being granted any consideration that the national media publishing claims against me, while I was silenced by my adherence to the confidentiality agreement, is prejudicial to my case.” He concluded, “My constituents in Somerton and Frome who elected me three times with overwhelming majorities have for a year been deprived of the voice they need. I am so grateful for their many messages of support, and it is with sorrow that I have no choice but to provoke the uphea val of a by-election.”
In a statement issued to Frome Times, his wife, Harriet Warburton said, “It’s appalling that David’s political career had to end in this way, but we cannot go on like this. The ICGS process he was subjected to is flawed, incompetent, glacial and inadequate – life is worth more than being subjected to 14 months of their ponderous, amateur and prejudicial procedure – which apparently is accountable to no-one. “David’s constituents, he, our children and I have suffered enough. Somerton and Frome deserved better than to be mired into an oversight investigative process which is not fit for purpose and clearly has no interest in pursuing the truth or delivering justice. That it’s been over 14 months and still ongoing is simply beyond belief. The system needs to change. I hope for the sake of complainants and defendants both that positive change will happen but we’re no longer wil ling to be part of this.” There had been increasing calls for him to resign, as Frome and Somerton constituents complained that they were not being represented in Parliament while the investigation was taking place. One local resident said, “Warburton was supposed to be representing Frome and bringing national attention to our issues, but all he has done in the past year and a half is put the town in the media spotlight for terrible reasons… We need a fresh approach that will give proper representation, which we have sorely missed for the last 14 months.”Another resident added, “The news that Warburton has resigned has given me new hope that my voice and that of residents of Frome will be better represented in the House of Commons. I’m personally fed up with the disgraceful conduct of MPs and I can only hope we will all get back to having an honest and true spokesperson to represent our town.”David Warburton has been the local MP since 2015, when he won the seat from the Liberal Democrats. He was re-elected in 2017 and 2019, winning the last election with a majority of 19,213. He was the fourth MP to announce his resignation in a period of eight days.
