A WITNESS who saw Scottish Tory Brexiteer Ross Thomson in a Commons bar has told a newspaper the MP "was holding on to bottoms, but in a bid not to fall onto the floor".
Thomson, who represents Aberdeen South, was spoken to by officers after claims of men being groped in a parliamentary bar earlier this week.
Thomson denied the allegations, saying they are "completely false".
The male witness who was present said he did not see any groping but described Thomson as “handsy”.
“He was handsy, yes, and holding people all over, but it was in a bid to stand upright,” he told The Times. Thomson had been “holding on to bottoms, but in a bid not to fall on the floor”.
The paper reported that Thomson was seen having drinks in a Commons bar at about 6pm on Tuesday. Officers were sent to Strangers’ Bar just after 11pm.
It is understood that they spoke to Thomson but did not arrest him or escort him from the premises.
Just before the police were called a government minister tried to persuade Thomson, who witnesses described as being incredibly drunk, to go to home.
Lord Duncan of Springbank, a Scotland Office minister, and David Duguid, another Scottish Tory MP, tried to persuade him to leave.
Yesterday Jackson Carlaw, interim leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said that Thomson’s alleged conduct had fallen well below the standards expected of an MP.
It is understood that Tory whips have spoken to Thomson about the events of Tuesday night. Party insiders are understood to be very concerned about his welfare.
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement on Wednesday that their officers had been called “to a bar within the Palace of Westminster following a report of sexual touching. Officers attended and spoke to the parties involved — three men in their twenties and thirties. However, no formal allegations were made to the officers and no arrests were made.”
Thomson, who was elected in 2017, has previously attracted controversy for posting a picture of himself sitting on Saddam Hussein’s throne. The MP put the photograph on Facebook and boasted that he had been able to “channel my inner dictator” during a visit to the Middle East.
A hardline Brexiteer, he was one of a number of MPs who guided Boris Johnson through a media scrum to his speech at the Tory conference last autumn.
This month Commons officials launched a crackdown on alcohol in the Palace of Westminster. It can be served only from designated bars and restaurants, including Strangers’ Bar. MPs were warned to avoid after-hours drinking parties in their offices
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