Revealed: Neil Parish is named as Tory MP accused of watching porn on his phone in the Commons as he has whip suspended and reports himself to standards watchdog ending days of speculation
MP Neil Parish has had the Conservative whip suspended while he is being investigated for allegedly watching pornography in the Commons, it was announced today.
The MP for Tiverton and Honiton was identified after days of fevered speculation following the emergence of the allegations that he had been seen by two female politicians.
A spokeswoman for Chief Whip Chris Heaton-Harris said: ‘Having spoken to the Chief Whip this afternoon, Neil Parish MP is reporting himself to the Standards Committee of the House of Commons.
‘Mr Parish has been suspended from the Conservative Whip pending the outcome of that investigation.’
It is understood a process has now been launched through Parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS).
MP Neil Parish has had the Conservative whip suspended while he is being investigated for allegedly watching pornography in the Commons chamber
Chief Whip Chris Heaton-Harris (left) has now suspended the whip from the MP pending an investiation. Backbencher Nickie Aiken (right) said the Tory MP responsible for watching pornography in the Houses of Parliament should quit
A former minister has called for legislation to tackle public porn watching.
Lord Bethell revealed he saw a man ‘getting off’ on adult material on the Tube at 8am.
He urged Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries to use the upcoming Online Safety Bill to ‘address’ the problem.
‘I saw a man getting off on porn on the tube. At 800am. School kids nearby. Addiction. No impulse control. V sad,’ Lord Bethell tweeted.
‘@NadineDorries. Online Safety Bill needs to address this.’
Boris Johnson has previously condemned the alleged watching of porn in the Commons, while other Conservatives said the MP involved should take a ‘long, hard look’ at themselves and resign.
Meanwhile, there have been complaints that Mr Heaton-Harris had kicked the scandal ‘into the long grass’ by referring it to the Parliamentary grievance process rather than taking action.
MPs have reacted with revulsion to the claims that a Tory had been caught by two of his female colleagues watching porn in the House of Commons.
On a visit to Burnley yesterday, the PM told broadcasters: ‘I think it’s obviously unacceptable for anybody to be doing that kind of thing in the workplace.
‘It would be the same for any kind of job up and down the country, let’s be absolutely clear about that.
‘What needs to happen now is that the proper procedures need to be gone through, the independent complaints and grievances procedure needs to be activated and we need to get to understand the facts but, yeah, that kind of behaviour is clearly totally unacceptable.’
Attorney General Suella Braverman said if the MP was found to have been watching adult material it should result in them ‘no longer holding their privileged position as a Member of Parliament’.
She said there was a ‘very small minority of men – and it is men – who fall short and there are some bad apples who are out of order – who behave like animals, and are bringing Parliament into disrepute to be honest’.
Tory MP Nickie Aiken said earlier that the alleged porn-watching MP ‘has to resign’ from the Commons as she warned that he was causing ‘pain, suffering and embarrassment’ to both the party and Parliament.
He should ‘take a very very long, hard look’ at himself and ask ‘should I still be here?’, she told Times Radio.
Boris Johnson (pictured on a visit to Burnley yesterday) condemned the MP accused of watching porn in the Commons
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