CONSERVATIVE MP and prominent Brexiteer Peter Bone is facing a possible suspension from parliament over claims of bullying and sexual misconduct.
The Wellingborough MP was found by the Independent Expert Panel (IEP) to have "committed many varied acts of bullying and one act of sexual misconduct" against a member of his staff.
The probe by the IEP - which determines sanctions against MPs - focussed on claims of incidents in 2012 and 2013.
The body has recommended a six-week suspension from the House of Commons for Mr Bone, who has denied the allegations and called them "false and untrue".
Mr Bone was a staunch supporter of the UK leaving the EU, while in 2019 he spoke at a DUP fundraising event in Co Down.
Ahead of the event, he claimed he was unaware the gathering was a fundraiser, but said he was "happy to go" as at the time "the DUP are our partners" in the confidence and supply arrangement to support Theresa May's then-minority Conservative government.
If Mr Bone's suspension is approved by MPs, it could mean a recall petition and possible by-election for his seat.
The allegations against Mr Bone include claims he "verbally belittled, ridiculed, abused and humiliated" the employee, and it was also claimed he "repeatedly physically struck and threw things" at him.
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It was alleged Mr Bone had "repeatedly pressurised" the member of staff to give him a massage in his office, while it was claimed that during a visit to Madrid the MP indecently exposed himself to the complainant in the bathroom and bedroom of the hotel room they were sharing.
The Parliamentary Standards Commissioner upheld all four allegations of bullying and the allegation of sexual misconduct relating to the incident in Madrid. However, he found the demands for massages were bullying, not sexual misconduct.
Mr Bone appealed against the decision, which was then upheld by a sub-panel of the IEP, which described it as a "serious case of misconduct" including "a deliberate and conscious abuse of power using a sexual mechanism".
In a social media post, Mr Bone said the earlier Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) investigation into him "was flawed, procedurally unfair and didn't comply with its own rules and regulations".
Responding to the IEP findings, he said: "As I have maintained throughout these proceedings, none of the misconduct allegations against me ever took place. They are false and untrue claims. They are without foundation."
A Downing Street spokesperson said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been "clear about the importance of integrity, professionalism and accountability being core values at the heart of Government" and "wants those standards to be rigorously upheld".
Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds said the allegations were "extremely serious", while Liberal Democrat chief whip Wendy Chamberlain said Mr Sunak must remove the whip from Mr Bone and call on him to resign.
A Conservative Party spokesperson said: "This case was investigated by CCHQ (Conservative Campaign Headquarters), however the complainant withdrew from the process before the case was heard."
