Newcastle MP gives emotive speech and demands Government appoint new Independent Ethics Adviser

A Newcastle MP has demanded the Government appoint a new Independent Ethics Adviser after the numerous recent Downing Street controversies.

The latest scandal to hit Boris Johnson comes as former chief whip Chris Pincher faces allegations of sexual misconduct - which the Tamworth MP denies.

No 10 and Mr Johnson originally denied having knowledge of such allegations before appointing Mr Pincher to his role as chief whip.

However, it has now emerged that the Prime Minister was aware and backtracked to say he believed "allegations were either resolved or did not progress to a formal complaint".

The incident of course follows the controversy of Party-gate and recent Tory MPs Neil Parish and Imran Ahmad Khan stepping down from roles for watching porn in parliament and child sexual assault respectively.

MP for Newcastle North Catherine McKinnell spoke in the House of Commons and asked how the public could trust the Government to "uphold and investigate breaches of standards effectively" without an Independent Ethics Adviser.

She said: "People need to trust that the people who make decisions and work in organisations that work on their behalf can be trusted.

“With every hour of this scandal we are getting a different version of events about what the Prime Minister knew and when. He has yet again been proved incapable of telling the truth and being straight with the public.

“This country deserves a Prime Minister they can trust. Yet whether it is wallpaper in Downing Street, partygate, or inappropriate behaviour from his own MPs, this Prime Minister and his Government have been caught out time and time again.

“Week after week, the seven principles of public life - Selflessness, Integrity, Objectivity, Accountability, Openness, Honesty, and Leadership – are being degraded by this Government. Standards in public life do matter, and it is time for Conservative MPs to stand up for them and do the right thing.”