A male MP has been accused of repeatedly asking a young female aide to ‘come sit on my lap’ amid fresh claims of a ‘predatory culture’ at Westminster.
Ellie Varley, who works for Tory minister Dehenna Davison, spoke out as she claimed fellow parliamentary staff ‘don’t have trust in the system’ for reporting issues.
The allegations are the latest in a series of ‘Pestminster’ sleaze claims against MPs and senior political figures.
A string of accusations of sexual misbehaviour in recent years has seen Parliament introduce new schemes for reporting incidents.
But they have been described as having made no difference to a ‘predatory culture’.
Downing Street today admitted Parliament has ‘a long way to go’ to crackdown on misconduct – although No10 insisted there was ‘not fundamentally’ a toxic environment.
Ellie Varley, who works for Tory minister Dehenna Davison, spoke out as she claimed fellow parliamentary staff ‘don’t have trust in the system’ for reporting issues
The 25-year-old revealed her experiences of working in Westminster during a BBC Newsnight interview and said a problem with sexual misconduct ‘transcends party politics’
Ms Varley, 25, revealed her experiences of working in Westminster during an interview with the BBC’s Newsnight programme and said a problem with sexual misconduct ‘transcends party politics’.
Recalling an encounter with a male MP on the Parliamentary estate, she said: ‘He just kept saying just come sit on my lap. And I was like: “I’m fine, thank you. I don’t want to sit on your lap”.’
Ms Varley added the MP was so persistent she felt she had no choice, and reluctantly agreed to ‘get him off my case’.
The BBC reported the MP is one of a number to be suspended over separate allegations.
Ms Varley also spoke of people ‘incessantly’ messaging her and claimed people working in Parliament don’t feel safe to report issues.
‘They don’t have the trust in the system. I’m just fed up,’ she added.
Ms Davison, MP for Bishop Auckland and a minister at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, said she was ‘incredibly proud of Ellie for speaking out about this’.
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‘The culture in Westminster has to change,’ she added.
The BBC also quoted a unnamed ex-Commons worker as saying: ‘In the bars you’d still see male MPs all over staffers.
‘In their physical space, buying them drinks and actually behaving in a pretty disgusting state – touching bums and putting their hands all over their lower backs. It’s lecherous.’
A senior official, said to have worked in the Commons for several years, was also quoted as saying the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) set up in 2018 had made no difference to what they described as a ‘predatory culture’.
In total, six members of staff were reported to have told the BBC that abuses of power by male MPs and senior staffers remained common and the new complaints process was too slow.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman said: ‘Parliament has a long way to go and a lot of work to do’
Asked about the claims, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman said: ‘Parliament has a long way to go and a lot of work to do to ensure we’re not seeing these incidents taking place.’
A House of Commons spokesperson also admitted ‘there is more work to be done’ to improve things.
‘Bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct have absolutely no place in Parliament, and we take any complaint of unacceptable behaviour extremely seriously,’ they added.
‘We remain committed to ensuring that lasting cultural change can be achieved here.
‘For many, the ICGS has provided confidential and sensitive support and allowed for the delivery of robust, independent investigation of complaints, which had not been possible prior to its establishment.
‘However – though much has been achieved in the last five years, we know there is more work to be done.
‘The ICGS always seeks to learn from every case, striving to deliver a compassionate and effective service that everyone in Parliament can be proud of, contributing to building a workplace where everyone feels safe and valued.
Mike Clancy, general secretary of the Prospect union which represents workers in Parliament, said: ‘A complaints system can only work if its investigations are timely and if people are clear that perpetrators will face appropriate censure.
‘Part of that has to be giving Parliament the ability to exclude MPs from the House when they are accused of serious misconduct.
‘As such the Government must bring forward a vote on exclusion proposals at the soonest opportunity.’
