Resign immediately to spare constituents recall process, Labour tells Peter Bone

Labour has called on former Tory MP Peter Bone to stand down immediately and spare constituents a recall petition process in order to pave the way for a by-election in his seat.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the suspended Wellingborough MP should “recognise the seriousness of this” after an independent investigation found he had engaged in bullying and sexual misconduct.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted on Thursday any electoral test would be “difficult” when asked about the prospect of a vote.

But his deputy Oliver Dowden denied that the Tories were admitting defeat in a contest where they would be defending a majority of 18,500.

Speaking to the PA news agency, Ms Cooper said: “We do want to see a by-election take place. This was obviously a serious report and there was a full-process investigation that took place.

“And I think rather than the community having to go through the whole recall process, it would be better to just be able to have Peter Bone recognise the seriousness of this and actually make sure that people have the by-election. But let’s be honest, what we want to see is a general election as soon as possible.

“Everything is broken now after 13 years of the Tories. I think what we saw in Tamworth in Bedfordshire, but also in Selby and in Rutherglen was people wanting a fresh start, they really want to see change.”

The Commons on Wednesday approved a six-week suspension for Mr Bone after Parliament’s Independent Expert Panel upheld counts of bullying and sexual misconduct against him relating to a staff member.

A recall petition will be held which will trigger a by-election if signed by 10% of voters in his Northamptonshire constituency.

North Northamptonshire Council confirmed on Thursday that the petition will open on November 8 and close on December 19.

There is a suggestion that Mr Bone, who was stripped of the Tory whip after a report into his conduct was made public, was out campaigning with party activists on the day MPs ratified his suspension.

A tweet from Helen Harrison, a Conservative councillor on North Northamptonshire Council, showed a picture of herself with the veteran MP, saying it was “lovely to be out” with Mr Bone leafleting for a local candidate.

The Conservative Party has been approached for comment.

Mr Bone has held Wellingborough for the Conservatives since 2005 and the five-figure majority he secured at the last general election is smaller than the majorities the Tories had held in both Tamworth and Mid Bedfordshire in 2019.

Both fell to Labour in by-elections last week, with Sir Keir Starmer’s party recording a 22-point swing towards it in the Tamworth victory.

Mr Dowden, asked whether the Tories were concerned about the prospect of another by-election, told Sky News: “We are not in a situation right now that there is going to be a by-election.

“That is up to the people of Peter Bone’s constituency, and of course any by-election for a government that has been in power for 13 years is always going to be challenging.

“But if there is a by-election, and it is a very big ‘if’, then we will go out and make our case.”

Asked whether the Government thought it would be defeated, Mr Dowden replied: “No, I’m not saying we are going to lose it at all — I’m saying that we will go out there and make our case very robustly.”

The IEP found Mr Bone had “verbally belittled, ridiculed, abused and humiliated” an employee and “repeatedly physically struck and threw things” at him.

He was found to have indecently exposed himself to the complainant in the bathroom of a hotel room during a work trip to Madrid.

The MP also imposed an “unwanted and humiliating ritual” on the man by forcing him to sit with his hands in his lap when the MP was unhappy with his work, the investigation found.

He said the allegations against him were “false and untrue” and “without foundation” last week, but he was kicked out of the Tory parliamentary party the next day.

The complainant at the centre of the case has told the BBC it was a “horrid, brutal, dark experience that left me a broken shell of the young man I once was”.

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle is seeking procedural advice after Tory former minister Liam Fox raised concerns of a possible contempt of Parliament caused by the BBC interview.