Tory leader slates MP ‘who groped men’ in bar at Commons
A SCOTTISH Tory MP accused of drunkenly groping men in a Parliament bar has been criticised by the party’s caretaker leader.
Jackson Carlaw yesterday described Ross Thomson’s alleged behaviour as ‘completely unacceptable’.
Witnesses claim Mr Thomson, 31, attempted to assault guests in the House of Commons’ Strangers’ Bar on Tuesday evening – with police forced to remove him from the venue.
Officers were called at 11pm amid reports of ‘sexual touching’ by the Aberdeen South MP.
Mr Thomson kept a low profile yesterday and refused to answer messages and calls.
The Scottish Conservatives claimed that the MP would make a statement – but talks between the party and Mr Thomson appeared to break down last night.
On Wednesday, witnesses claimed Mr Thomson had been ‘groping young men’ who were guests at Westminster by ‘grabbing their backside and genitals’. It is understood colleagues tried to get him to leave but he failed to do so.
Scotland Yard confirmed that they attended the bar following reports of an incident involving three men in their 20s and 30s.
No arrests were made and no official complaint filed. It is understood Mr Thomson has not spoken to either Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson or Mr Carlaw.
A senior party source said the whips office at Westminster were providing ‘support’. At Holyrood yesterday, Mr Carlaw said: ‘I know enough to say that the alleged behaviour is completely unacceptable and falls well below the standard I think any of us would expect of any elected representative.
‘Inquiries are ongoing and we may have more to say at a later time.’ When asked if Mr Thomson should ‘consider his position’, Mr Carlaw replied: ‘As I say, inquiries are ongoing.
‘But I can say, and I’m quite happy to say, his behaviour is completely unacceptable.’
Those close to Mr Thomson say he has been struggling with his role as an MP, with claims he is ‘not enjoying’ the job.
They added they were ‘worried’ about him after the breakdown of his marriage and he became a target of online trolls.
But a source said: ‘He shouldn’t have done what he did. There is no excuse.’
Another source said: ‘He has become high-profile very quickly and attracted a lot of criticism. I don’t think he has handled it particularly well. But would anyone in that environment?’
Mr Thomson was elected to Westminster in 2017 after serving in the Scottish parliament.
He caused controversy in 2016 when he repaid hotel expenses for a room he had shared with a male friend. In April last year, he was branded a ‘disgrace’ after he shared a picture of himself on Saddam Hussein’s throne.
Yesterday, Mr Thomson’s estranged husband Douglas Mathewson – whom he wed in a civil partnership in 2013 – wrote on Twitter that the allegations were a ‘good insight into why we are no longer together’.
He later deleted the tweet after receiving ‘threats’.
But he said: ‘What is now in the public domain is giving everyone a truthful perception of the individual.’
Mr Thomson did not respond to a request for comment.
‘Completely unacceptable’