PARLIAMENT’S probe into Ross Thomson will continue despite the Aberdeen South Tory deciding to stand down as an MP.

On Sunday, the senior politician, who is a close ally of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, announced that he would not seek re-election following claims that he tried to put his hands down the trousers of a Scottish Labour MP.

Thomson described the claim as defamatory and as a “politically motivated” smear.

Paul Sweeney told the Mail on Sunday that the alleged incident took place in October 2018 after he had invited a group of his old Glasgow University friends for a tour of the Commons.

They later went to the Strangers’ Bar for a drink where he claims they were interrupted by a very drunk Thomson who then started touching the Labour MP.

READ MORE: Ross Thomson to stand down as Tory candidate

The Parliamentary Standards Commission office are unable to comment or even confirm if inquiries are taking place. However, they told The National that while the dissolution of Parliament – expected tonight – means any ongoing inquiries are put on hold, the commission would generally resume work on those inquiries after the General Election.

The allegation was separate to a similar accusation made in February of this year, when Thomson was publicly accused of groping a man in the same bar.

The Aberdeen South MP also strongly denies that incident.

In a statement released on social media on Sunday, he said that even though he was innocent, he was going to quit.

He said: “I always believed politics was about noble pursuits and doing what you believed to be best for your country. My experience is that our politics is now so poisonous that we will never attract good, honest and decent people in the first place.

“I have therefore made the most difficult decision that I could ever make. I have decided that I will stand down as the Scottish Conservative and Unionist candidate for Aberdeen South.”

READ MORE: Labour MP claims he was groped by Tory Ross Thomson in Commons Bar

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Sweeney said that he had decided to come forward because of his frustration with the slow progress being made by the Parliamentary Standards Commission in its investigation. He added that he believed the watchdog would “take prompt action, given the number of witnesses to it and the startling similarity to the claims made by other men about a separate incident earlier that month”.

Sweeney continued: “However, nine months on from reporting the assault, I am disappointed that voters will be asked to give their verdict on Ross Thomson before that investigation has concluded.

“I’ve waived my anonymity because justice has not been done.”

Sweeney said the Tory MP was “drunk to the point where he was barely able to stand up”, after which he allegedly fondled him and tried to thrust a hand down his trousers.

He said: “I felt paralysed. It was such a shocking thing. I was in a cold sweat, it was mortifying. Nobody knew where to look at the table. It’s embarrassing.”

Sweeney said the alleged incident had impacted on his working life and he felt uncomfortable having a Westminster office close to the Tory.

Meanwhile, Aberdeen City Council co-leader Douglas Lumsden has been named as the new Tory candidate for Aberdeen South.

He said he was “honoured” and paid tribute to “the hard work and dedication of Ross Thomson”.

Lumsden added: “He has made a personal decision to step down, but he has always been a great champion for this city.