Dirty messages sent by sex text MP Andrew Griffiths reviewed by party - as his constituents demand he resigns
Corruption Level: 5
Content:
PARTY bosses are reviewing thousands of kinky messages sent by Tory MP Andrew Griffiths - as they decide whether or not to throw him out of the party.
More than 2,000 messages sent by the ex-minister, 47, are being looked at, amid accusations he could have broken the party's ethics code.
At a meeting of his local party last week he was told his fate is to be decided after the investigation is over.
One councillor said "There’s only one outcome. He has to step down for the sake of the party."
And he will also face a probe by the Parliamentary Standards Commission too - into whether he brought Parliament into disrepute. The married MP sent two women money for x-rated pictures and videos and suggested a range of sex acts.
Meanwhile, scores of angry constituents demanded he quit after it was revealed he bombarded the two barmaids with texts. He stepped down from his Government role after the story emerged, but is still the MP for Burton and Uttoxeter. A group of around 100 locals gathered in Burton upon Trent with placards to demand he quits as an MP too. One accused him of being a "misogynist swine".
Griffiths said he was "deeply shamed" for embarrassing the Government and said he would be "seeking help" for his problems.
Outcome:
The MP is just one of a string of MPs in recent years who have been stung for sex scandals.
The former minister for small business told the Press he was abused aged eight by a 15-year-old boy. He also suffered depression over failures to conceive and found out his brother had cancer shortly before he sent the texts. He said "What I have realised is that mental health is bloody and brutal and completely inexplicable and I can't explain why my coping mechanism was to send those texts."
The MP told the Press he had been reduced to tears when he re-read the string of bizarre messages he sent to a much younger woman. He admitted he had "Embarrassed and humiliated" his loved ones and described how talking to therapists made him understand his own actions.
Mr Griffiths even considered suicide - before Chief Whip Julian Smith stepped in and consulted the Commons doctor, who sent the ex-minister to hospital for treatment. He faced another year of continuing to consult psychiatric experts.
The MP said he considered quitting Parliament altogether in the wake of the sexting scandal, but decided to stay and fight for his career in a bid to make up for the damage he's done to his family.
That week a Tory party panel is set to issue its verdict on whether or not Mr Griffiths can remain a member. He also faces a separate probe from the Commons standards watchdog.
Former Cabinet minister Eric Pickles today stood up for Mr Griffiths, saying "He deserves a chance to rebuild his shattered life."
Lord Pickles added "I saw Andrew on the day of his admission to hospital. I have spoken to him regularly during his treatment, sometimes daily. I am proud of the way he has faced up to his illness."
Griffiths, who became a father in April 2018, allegedly sent barmaid Imogen Treharne, 28, and her pal @pound;700 and offered to rent a flat to meet for sex.
Amongst the reported messages, it's claimed the MP wrote "Take off the bra and panties... you've got Daddy in such a frenzy" and "Daddy is going to have to put some manners on you".
In other messages, it's alleged he told the girls "I had a bitch who I made dress up like a pig - piggy nose, ears, bitch-pig written across her forehead and a piggy tail".
Outcome:
MP reads out sex pest's kinky texts in Commons
Corruption Level: 5
Content:
Andrew Griffith, MP for Burton, was allowed to have the party whip back so he could vote for Theresa May in the leadership contest.
MP Jess Phillips read out MP Andrew Griffith's personal texts in the Commons - after he was let back into the Tory fold.
The married Tory politician resigned as a minister and had the whip removed after he sent 2,000 graphic texts to barmaids calling himself Daddy and describing sex acts to them in detail.
The business minister quit the Government and apologised for the distress he caused to his wife and baby daughter. But Labour's Jess Phillips attacked the decision to let him, along with fellow MP Charlie Elphicke, have the Tory whip back. She read out Griffith's personal texts to colleagues in the Commons, saying "'She's so cute, so sweet, I can't wait to beat her. Can she take a beating?' Not my words Mr Speaker, the words of the MP for Burton."
She went on "Last night the Leader of the House's party gave him and the MP for Dover the whip back without any due process. What message does this send about any process here in this place can ever be trusted?" She added "And what matters more - political power or protecting victims of sexual harassment and abuse?"
Commons leader Andrea Leadsom said she was "absolutely committed to changing the culture of this place" and there was a process that had been undertaken. But she said it was ultimately the Chief Whip's decision to reinstate the whip for the vote.
Her comments prompted MPs to cry "shame!" and be accused of "meaningless words".
Griffiths, 48, who became a father in April 2018, just 6 months earlier, sent barmaid Imogen Treharne, 28, and her pal @pound;700 and offered to rent a flat to meet for sex, according to the Press.
Amongst the reported messages, it's claimed the MP wrote "Take off the bra and panties... you've got Daddy in such a frenzy" and "Daddy is going to have to put some manners on you".
In other messages, it's alleged he told the girls "I had a bitch who I made dress up like a pig - piggy nose, ears, bitch-pig written across her forehead and a piggy tail".
The ex-minister later claimed he was having a mental breakdown and had to spend a month in hospital.
A No 10 source said the MP could face further action if an investigation into his behaviour warranted it.
They stressed that the whip was not restored just for Mr Griffiths to vote in yesterday's confidence vote.
A spokesman for the Conservative Party said today "They were elected as Conservatives. The restoration of the whip had been under consideration for some time, and the Chief Whip decided that in the circumstances of a leadership confidence ballot, it was right they have the whip restored to be able to vote in that."
Outcome:
Shamed Tory Andrew Griffiths who bombarded barmaids with thousands of explicit texts resigns
Corruption Level: 5
Content:
Shamed Tory MP who sent thousands of explicit texts to two barmaids as at last quit politics. Andrew Griffiths announced he would not be fighting the Burton seat he first won in 2010.
His decision was less than 48 hours before the deadline for the parties to declare their candidates for the December 12 election. But his wife Kate entered the race to be the Tory candidate to replace him.
Griffiths quit as a business minister last year after it was revealed he had sent 2,000 lewd and inappropriate text messages to two barmaids. He was also alleged to have sent barmaid Imogen Treharne, 28, and her pal £700 and offered to rent a flat to meet for sex.
Amongst the reported messages, the MP wrote "Take off the bra and panties, you've got Daddy in such a frenzy" and "Daddy is going to have to put some manners on you".
In other messages, it's alleged he told the girls "I had a bitch who I made dress up like a pig - piggy nose, ears, bitchpig written across her forehead and a piggy tail".
He was cleared of wrongdoing by the parliamentary standards watchdog but faced calls to quit as an MP after claims he had damaged the Tories' reputation. Griffiths was previously a champion of women entering politics having set up the Tory Women to Win campaign.
Kate Griffiths is the second wife of a former Tory politician to seek to replace them at the election.
Last week Charlie Elphicke, who is standing trial over allegations of sexual assault of two women, announced he will not fight the seat of Dover but his wife Natalie was formally selected as the Tory candidate to replace him.
Outcome: