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Dozens of UK lawmakers accused of sexual misconduct, watchdog reveals

Monday, 18 April 2022 8:09 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 18 April 2022 9:26 AM ]

British PM Boris Johnson makes a statement on situation in Ukraine, in the House of Commons, London, UK, February 22, 2022. (Photo by Reuters)

More than 50 lawmakers in the UK have been accused of sexual misconduct, ranging from harassment to more serious wrongdoing, parliament's independent complaints body has revealed.

According to reports citing Westminster insiders, around 70 complaints about 56 members of parliament (MPs) have been received by the parliament’s Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS).

The latest cases are complaints against two Scottish National Party (SNP) MPs accused of sexual assault and harassment.

Sunday Times newspaper reported on Sunday that most of the complaints have been made by third parties and are yet to be corroborated.

According to the newspaper, the former nationalist chief whip Patrick Grady and Patricia Gibson, MP for North Ayrshire and Arran, are said to have received the investigation's findings and asked for a response.

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Britain

The revelation comes weeks after Conservative MP David Warburton was suspended over sexual misconduct against a woman.

It also follows on the heels of the detention of an unnamed Conservative MP last year over suspicion of rape.

It is worth noting that Imran Ahmad Khan, a conservative member of the parliament, resigned last week after his conviction for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old in 2008.

Multiple former members of staff and party colleagues who had long-standing concerns about Khan’s behavior said that he had a history of “bullying behavior” toward staff.

“It’s hard not to conclude there’s something seriously wrong with the vetting process,” said one of his former staffers, stressing that “he should never have been selected.”

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The UK officials in different bodies and even at ministerial levels have repetitively committed sexual assaults against their staff, which, in some cases, has led to their resignations.

Last year, British Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, was accused by Virginia Giuffre of having raped her at the London home of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein's longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Andrew has also come under pressure to shed more light on the nature and extent of Epstein’s relationship with Maxwell, the daughter of the disgraced media mogul, Robert Maxwell.

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