London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jul 21, 2025

MP Julian Knight accuses Tory party of denying right to fair hearing

MP Julian Knight accuses Tory party of denying right to fair hearing

Julian Knight has accused the Conservative Party of denying him the right to a fair hearing, after he was suspended as a Tory MP following a report to police involving allegations of sexual assault.
Mr Knight said he was "entirely innocent of any wrongdoing whatsoever".

In a letter to the party's chief whip, Simon Hart, Mr Knight strongly objected to the way he was named by the whip's office on Wednesday night, when they confirmed his suspension from the parliamentary Conservative party.

He has demanded an "immediate and unequivocal answer" as to why he was suspended and publicly named.

The MP for Solihull said the whips - who are responsible for party discipline - must have known their actions would "entirely prejudice" any prospect of getting a fair hearing in any inquiry, court or disciplinary hearing.

"By unilaterally and publicly suspending the whip you have stripped me of the rights to anonymity or a fair hearing in any judicial forum or, indeed, in the court of public opinion," he wrote.

In the letter, posted on his Twitter account on Thursday, Mr Knight said he was making the statement after his name was linked with an "apparently serious but entirely unspecified offence".

He said he was making his letter public "in the interests of natural justice" and has asked the chief whip does the same with this reply.

On Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the chief whip said in a statement Mr Knight had been suspended as a Conservative MP after a complaint to the Metropolitan Police.

Mr Knight said he found out he had been suspended from the media, after the statement from the chief whip's office was released.

He said no one from the whip's office spoke to him before his suspension and he had heard nothing from the police about "any allegation apparently made against me".

The BBC has been told the chief whip was in touch with Mr Knight on Wednesday night.

But when asked for a response to Mr Knight's position, the chief whip's office would not comment further given the police investigation.

On Thursday, the Metropolitan Police said that on 28 October it had received allegations of sexual assault against unnamed victims reported to have taken place on unknown dates at undisclosed locations.

In his letter to the chief whip, Mr Knight asked whether his suspension was related to those allegations.

The statement added: "On 7 December, a further referral relating to the incident[s] was made and an investigation was launched."

Police said inquiries were ongoing and there have been no arrests.

In a tweet earlier, Mr Knight said he believed his suspension was "wrong and unjustified".

"Subsequently, I have received what my lawyers advise are explicit threats involving blackmail as well as being at the centre of a campaign of rumour and innuendo," he said.

"All matters are now with my lawyers and I will be recusing myself from Parliament until the matter is resolved."

Mr Knight, who entered Parliament in 2015, is chairman of the Commons culture committee.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
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
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
×