UK govt faces new boozy scandal as deputy chief whip quits

London, July 1

Britain’s government is facing another boozy scandal after the deputy chief whip resigned from his post following a drunken incident this week, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson facing calls on Friday to expel him from the Conservative Party.

Chris Pincher, whose role was to maintain discipline among Tory members of Parliament, submitted a letter of resignation to Johnson on Thursday.

“I drank far too much” on Wednesday night, Pincher said in his letter. “I’ve embarrassed myself and other people which is the last thing I want to do and for that I apologise to you and to those concerned.”

But he said he would remain as a Conservative lawmaker and continue to support Johnson from the back benches of Parliament.

Pincher’s resignation as deputy chief whip added to Johnson’s woes, which have included other scandals like “partygate” and a Conservative lawmaker resigning over watching pornography on his phone in the House of Commons.

Johnson, who also recently survived a no-confidence vote, had just returned from the Group of Seven and NATO summits and was looking to put those embarrassments and two recent by-election defeats behind him.

British tabloid The Sun reported that Pincher groped two men on Wednesday night at a private members club in London for the Conservative Party.

“This latest episode shows how far standards in public life have been degraded on Boris Johnson’s watch,” Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said.

“The Conservative Party is so mired in sleaze and scandal that it is totally unable to tackle the challenges facing the British people.”