Ex-Tory MP reveals she was victim of harassment in Commons

2 May 2022, 16:45 | Updated: 2 May 2022, 17:26

Former Conservative MP admits to being victim of sexual harrassment by fellow MPs

A drastic culture change in Parliament is 'long overdue' amid a string of scandals coming out of the Commons, this former Tory MP says.

Victoria Borwick, was Deputy Mayor of London under Boris Johnson and is the former Conservative MP for Kensington. She joined Andrew Pierce following the resignation of Tory MP Neil Parish for watching pornography in the House.

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Controversy has swirled in Westminster following the news after senior Conservatives cited long hours and a drinking culture in Parliament as having part of the fault for the scandal.

Soon afterwards another scandal emerged about sexual harassment being widespread in the House.

"Did some MPs overstep their boundaries with you?" Andrew asked Ms Borwick.

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"I fear to say so, from both Conservatives and Labour", she confirmed. She went on to blame an "inner culture that makes it seem that [it is] acceptable."

She went on: "People say 'why did you put up with it? Why didn't you say anything?'" Making the case that "that was very much the culture" when she was an MP, telling Andrew that she "didn't want to step out of line.

"I was a newbie."

She concluded by telling Andrew that gender quotas for MPs, as argued by Oliver Dowden, will not be enough. "It's got to be a culture change", she insisted.