UK Tory MP faces eight-week ban over groping incident

UK Tory MP Chris Pincher has been suspended for eight weeks after a probe found him guilty of groping two men at a London club last year.

Parliament's standards committee released a statement saying that his "completely inappropriate" behaviour was an "abuse of power".

Pincher said that he wanted to "apologise sincerely" for his conduct, further adding that he had sought professional medical help, which is "ongoing".

Pincher is due to stand down as an MP at the next general election, which is scheduled to take place next year.

Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said the report was "shocking," and Pincher should "do the decent thing" and resign as an MP immediately, reportsBBC.

The incident took place at the Carlton Club, a private members club in central London, and was examined by Parliament's standards commissioner Daniel Greenberg.

Pincher was heavily intoxicated

After a year-long investigation, commissioner Daniel Greenberg found out that Pincher had groped a then-employee of the House of Lords.

He groped his arm and neck and then his bottom. As per BBC reports, Greenberg also found during the probe that the MP had also groped a civil servant on his bottom and then his testicles.

Pincher was "heavily intoxicated" at the time and remembers "feeling hot and saying to someone ‘I’m alright’," the commissioner wrote.

But he "does not recall any other details about the evening or how he got home," Greenberg added.

The victim told the commissioner that he was deeply affected by the incident and it continues to haunt him and affect his sleep.

The cross-party Standards Committee said Pincher's actions amounted to "sexual misconduct" and his behaviour was "unwanted, upsetting and inappropriate".

In a report after the investigation, MPs on the cross-party standards committee which examines complaints against MPs, concluded Pincher's "profoundly damaging" behaviour "represented an abuse of power".

They further added that his conduct had broken the Commons behaviour code by causing significant damage to the reputation of the parliament.

Their report added that, in a written submission, Pincher had accepted his behaviour "damaged his own reputation and that of the government".

The committee however further added that Pincher declined the suggestion that he had done 'significant damage' to the reputation of the Parliament, further arguing that he was speaking at the club as a former minister rather than as an MP.

Pincher now has 10 days to appeal to an independent expert panel, if he can provide new evidence.

(With inputs from agencies)

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