London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 02, 2025

MP Claudia Webbe loses appeal against harassment conviction

MP Claudia Webbe loses appeal against harassment conviction

An MP has lost an appeal against her conviction for harassing a woman who was having a sexual relationship with her then partner.

Claudia Webbe, MP for Leicester East, was given a suspended prison sentence for harassing Michelle Merritt between September 2018 and April 2020.

Her appeal was dismissed at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday.

However the 10-week suspended sentence she received in November was reduced to community service.

Judge Deborah Taylor and two magistrates ruled this should amount to 80 hours - a reduction from the 200 hours she was originally ordered to complete.

A trial at Westminster Magistrates' Court heard Webbe was jealous of Ms Merritt's relationship with Lester Thomas.

The 57-year-old - who represents her constituency as an independent after being expelled from Labour - made numerous calls to Ms Merritt in a campaign of harassment over the course of 18 months.

Her trial heard on one occasion she made an "angry" call, used a derogatory term and added: "You should be acid."


'Amounted to harassment'


It also heard how Webbe threatened to send naked images of Ms Merritt to her family and a recording of a call in which she was heard shouting "get out of my relationship".

The appeal hearing heard Ms Merritt had reported being "threatened by a public figure with acid", but received 17 further phone calls lasting 14 seconds or less from Webbe after the MP was warned by police to stop contacting her.

The judge said the court found Webbe had not "made a threat to throw acid over" Ms Merritt but that a string of silent phone calls and threats to reveal naked pictures of her had been "a course of conduct which amounted to harassment".

Webbe said she split up with Lester Thomas in March 2022


The appeal heard since the trial, Ms Merritt's phone had been examined and downloaded by police, revealing sexual messages between her and Mr Thomas.

Webbe's barrister Helen Law suggested Ms Merritt had "lied" or "misled" the magistrates' court when she said she and Mr Thomas were just "good friends".

But prosecutor Susannah Stevens said: "What was going on between Michelle Merritt and Lester Thomas is actually unhelpful to the appellant's case because Claudia Webbe's suspicions as to all of that provide her not with a defence but with a motivation."

The MP said she had split up with Mr Thomas in March this year after learning of the messages he had shared with Ms Merritt.


Analysis

By Tony Roe, BBC East Midlands political editor

The decision to overturn the custodial element of Claudia Webbe's sentence is significant as it means voters won't get a chance - for now - to say if she should be sacked as an MP, in what's called a recall petition.

We will now have to see if Parliament's Standards Committee decides to act on the conviction.

If she were to be suspended from Parliament for at least 10 days, that then is another route for a recall petition which would put Webbe's future in the hands of the voters of Leicester East.

Webbe entered the Commons in 2019, winning the seat formerly held by Keith Vaz.

Following her failure to overturn the conviction, she said she was "deeply shocked".

She said: "As I said in court and repeat now, I have never threatened violence nor would I."

Webbe's former party urged her to quit as an MP in the wake of the verdict.

A Labour spokesman said: "The allegations in this case were extremely serious.

"The Labour Party rightly expects elected representatives to maintain the very highest standards at all times.

"Ms Webbe should now resign so the people of Leicester East can get the representation they deserve."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
×