

Complainants should âgo to the policeâ with any allegations of rape against a Tory MP, a minister has suggested, amid calls for an investigation into the Conservative Partyâs handling of reported accusations.
Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho said she could not âcomment on the specifics of the caseâ and did not think it was right for âpoliticians to provide a running commentaryâ on such serious claims.
It comes after it was reported that Sir Jake Berry, a former Tory Party chairman, told police that an internal âfailureâ to act on allegations of rape allowed an unnamed MP to âcontinue to offendâ.
I would urge them to go to the police so they can be properly looked into
Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho
According to a copy of a letter obtained by the Mail On Sunday (MoS), Sir Jake said he found out about a number of suspected assaults when he discovered the Conservatives had covered the cost of treatment for one of the alleged victims at a private hospital.
Appearing on Mondayâs morning media round, Ms Coutinho told Times Radio: âThere may be live police investigation issues, there may be questions of confidentiality, so I canât comment on the specifics of this case.
âBut what I can say is that anyone thatâs been through that kind of sexual assault, and I appreciate that the stories that were in the press, theyâre anonymous, the people are unnamed, but theyâre still horrific stories. But I would urge them to go to the police so they can be properly looked into.â
Asked whether the Government would support an inquiry, she told Sky News: âI think the nature of the allegation is so serious that the right place for it to go to would be, if someone has got that kind of allegation, would be to go to the police.â
Both Labour and the Liberal Democrats called for an investigation by the Conservative Party, with the Opposition saying that a failure do so would be a âfailure of leadership and a dereliction of dutyâ.
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, also a former Tory chairman, told broadcasters he was not aware of the allegations and did not know who the alleged culprit was.
He told the BBC on Sunday that he does not ârecognise in any form the idea that we covered upâ, saying the party takes the claims âexceptionally seriouslyâ.
But Mr Sunakâs deputy later said he could not rule out that the party might have paid for treatment for an alleged victim.
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He told Times Radio: âIâm not denying that it could be the case that those payments were made, but it is not something that I authorised or (was) part of as chairman of the Conservative Party.â
Sir Jakeâs letter, seen by the MoS, suggests that an unnamed MP had assaulted as many as five people with little to no consequence, with some allegations including several claims of rape.
The Conservative Party has said it would not be commenting.