Growing pressure on local MP after new allegations

Pressure is mounting on local MP, David Warburton, after further allegations about his conduct surfaced over the weekend.

The Tory MP was suspended from the Parliamentary Conservative Party earlier this month over claims in the Sunday Times concerning sexual harassment of three women and of taking cocaine. 

He has also been accused of failing to declare a £150,000 loan from a Russian banker in 2017 to help buy a property. 

Now, The Sunday Times has reported that he wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on March 12th last year giving the banker, Roman Joukovski, a character reference, saying he was an ‘honest and straightforward person whom I trust’.  The letter – on official parliamentary notepaper – came after Mr Joukovski was ruled by the FCA as ‘not a fit and proper person’.  

David Warburton, who has been Frome MP since 2015, had the Conservative Whip in Parliament withdrawn last week pending the investigation into allegations about his conduct. He has denied the allegations, telling the Daily Telegraph, “I have enormous amounts of defence”.

The claims will be examined by Parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS), a parliamentary watchdog set up after the #MeToo scandal which saw a surge in allegations in Westminster.

On 3rd April, it was reported by the BBC that the MP had been admitted to a psychiatric hospital, experiencing ‘severe shock and stress’ following the allegations. His wife Harriet Warburton told Frome Times on Monday he was still in hospital and that his team is handling his casework as normal. She didn’t want to add any further comments.