Conservative MP Neil Parish Suspended Over Allegations of Viewing Pornography in Commons

Conservative MP Neil Parish has been suspended from the Whip over allegations from two fellow MPs that he watched pornography in the House of Commons.The Whips' Office had opened an investigation into the allegations. A spokesman for the Chief Whip said: "Having spoken to the Chief Whip this afternoon, Neil Parish MP is reporting himself to the Standards Committee of the House of Commons.

Mr Parish has been suspended from the Conservative Whip pending the outcome of that investigation."Parish has represented the Devon seat of Tiverton and Honiton since 2010. Previously, he was an MEP when the UK was under the European Union. He is the current chair of the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee and as such also sits on the powerful Liaison Committee.Two female Tory MPs made the allegation against Parish during a meeting of women Tory backbench MPs on Tuesday evening but he was not named.

The women told the Conservative Chief Whip, Chris Heaton-Harris, that they had both witnessed the MP watching explicit content on his mobile phone in the House of Commons.Another MP who attended the meeting said that Heaton-Harris had looked "horrified" by what the women claimed to have seen. He asked for the MP's identity. It is said that about 50 to 60 female Tory MPs were present at the meeting.

On Thursday, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed these claims for the first time. He said: "It's obviously unacceptable for anybody to be doing that kind of thing in the workplace. It would be the same for any job up and down the country. Clearly that kind of behaviour is totally unacceptable."Before Parish's name emerged, several Conservative MPs, including Nickie Aiken and Simon Hoare, had called on the unnamed MP accused of watching pornography to resign.