RISHI Sunak faces a new year’s nightmare with the Tories set to fight another brutal by-election.
Veteran Conservative Peter Bone tonight lost a recall petition to stay on as the MP for Wellingborough.
Peter Bone tonight lost a recall petition to stay on as the MP for WellingboroughPA
More than 13 per cent of his constituents demanded a by-election – well past the 10 per cent threshold.
The petition was triggered after Mr Bone was found to have exposed himself to a male staffer in a Madrid hotel.
In October the Commons sleaze commissioner ruled the MP “committed many varied acts of bullying and one act of sexual misconduct” against the staffer in 2012 and 2013.
He “verbally belittled, ridiculed, abused and humiliated” the employee and “repeatedly physically struck and threw things” at him.
Mr Bone, who in 2018 was revealed to have left his wife for a married physio 20 years his junior, insists he’s innocent.
Speaking after the result, he said the allegations “are totally untrue and without foundation” adding that 68,897 people “chose not to sign the petition which represents 86.8% of the electorate”.
He said the petition “came about as a result of an inquiry into alleged bullying and misconduct towards an ex-employee which was alleged to have occurred more than 10 years ago”.
The Wellingborough by-election is set to be the seventh in the space of 12 months.
Anneliese Dodds, chair of the Labour Party, said voters in had the “opportunity to vote for a fresh start” during a by-election.
The MP added: “Despite serious allegations made against him, Peter Bone has dragged his constituents through a lengthy recall petition rather than doing the right thing and offering his resignation.”
In October the Tories suffered humiliating defeats to Labour in the formerly safe seats of Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth.
Mr Bone has held Wellingborough for the Conservatives since 2005 and retained it at the last general election with a majority of 18,540.
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