Julian Knight Won't Stand At The Next Election After Losing Tory Whip
Julian Knight has announced he will not stand at the next General Election (UK Parliament)
2 min read
Julian Knight has announced that he will not stand at the next election and will not be seeking to get the Conservative whip back after the police dropped the investigation into a sexual assault allegation against him, which he denies.
The Solihull MP said that the last year had been “the worst of our lives” for him and his wife, as he had the whip suspended in December pending investigation.
Last month, the Metropolitan Police said they were “no longer proceeding with an investigation”, but Knight did not have the party whip restored in Parliament, with the whips office citing further complaints, which he said has left him “in limbo”.
Knight has said the initial “false and malicious accusation” did “untold damage” to his wellbeing.
“I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that no job or political career is worth this," he tweeted.
“I will not be requesting the return of the Conservative whip. I do this in sorrow and not in anger.”
Knight said he will continue to sit as an independent until the next General Election – which must be called by December 2024 – but he will lose his position as chair on the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, as the chair has to be a Conservative MP.
Knight has been MP for Solihull in the West Midlands since 2015, and served as a Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) in the Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions and Treasury between 2018 and 2019.
A number of MPs across parties have already announced they will not be standing at the next General Election for a broad variety of reasons, including those who joined Parliament as recently as 2019.
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