WATCH: ‘I am the victim’, Michael Fabricant claims after being included in sex dossier
2 min read
Tory MP Michael Fabricant has claimed he is “the victim” of a false allegation after being included in a dossier of Tory MPs accused of inappropriate behaviour.
The document, which includes almost 40 MPs, is thought to have been drawn up by Tory researchers.
It has been circulating around Westminster for several days and includes unsubstantiated allegations of inappropriate behaviour and rumours about relations between MPs.
Mr Fabricant is the latest MP to hit back at his inclusion on the list, describing the claims as “absolutely ludicrous”.
The dossier claims he was “inappropriate with a male journalist in the back of a taxi”, but Mr Fabricant insisted he had “no idea” what or who the allegations were referring to.
He told BBC Radio 5live's Emma Barnett: “I’ve got no idea. I’ve been racking my brains, trying to think, when have I ever even been with a journalist in the back of a taxi?
“I mean I must have done. I’ve been an MP for 25 years and before that I worked for the BBC, so I must have been with journalists.
“But you know, I mean what did the taxi driver think? It's almost ludicrous.
“I felt the victim actually. And then I began to think, well how many others are on the list, with far less specific accusations? So mine was a one-off.
“I've asked journalists up in the House of Commons press gallery, because they're a bunch of gossips and they will talk among each other. None of them had heard this story.”
Watch the clip here:
Yesterday Justice Minister Dominic Raab branded his inclusion on the list "a form of harassment and intimidation".
He said he has taken legal advice over the “false and malicious” claims.
Africa minister Rory Stewart is also named on the list as having made “odd requests” of his former researcher Sophie Bolsover.
He said the claims were “untrue and hurtful” and he and Ms Bolsover took to Twitter to rebut the allegations.
Kwasi Kwarteng, a parliamentary aide to Philip Hammond, also hit out after being accused of having relationships with two Conservative MPs.
He told ITV’s After the News: “Well one of them was in fact libellous, it’s just not true. The other was a historic relationship.”
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