Sexting scandal: what was the content of business minister Andrew Griffiths’ explicit messages?
MP says he is ‘deeply ashamed’ of sending more than 2,000 messages to two constituents
The prime minister has lost another member of her ministerial team after Andrew Griffiths was forced to resign for sending sexually explicit messages to two of his constituents.
The small business minister, whose wife gave birth to their first child three months ago, also paid the women to share videos of a sexual nature, according to an investigation by the Sunday Mirror.
The Conservative MP for Burton and Theresa May’s former chief of staff said he was “deeply ashamed” of his behaviour “which has caused untold distress to my wife and family”. He has also apologised to the PM and his constituents.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The BBC’s political correspondent Iain Watson said Griffiths, who decided to resign on Friday night ahead of publication yesterday, “jumped before he was pushed”.
One of the women he contacted, Imogen Treharne, 28, told the newspaper that Griffiths first messaged her in June after she shared a “racy” video on Snapchat.
The MP then reportedly sent more than 2,000 messages in three weeks to the two women. Treharne described the contents of the messages she received as “vile” and “disgusting”.
The Mirror alleges that Griffiths paid the women £700 and offered to rent a flat to meet for sex. “He demanded explicit photos and videos and described degrading sex acts in crude detail,” it reports.
He has been suspended from the Conservative party, pending an investigation.
It’s “a massive fall from grace for a man who became an MP in 2010 and cultivated an image as a happy-go-lucky, beer-loving northerner, a refreshingly ‘normal’ voice at Westminster,” the Sunday Times says.
The newspaper notes that Griffiths is the fourth senior Tory to leave the government in a sex scandal in recent years, following the departure of Damien Green, Michael Fallon and Brooks Newmark.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
How the biggest election year in history might play out
The Explainer Votes in world's biggest democracies, as well as its most 'despotic' and 'stressed' countries, face threats of violence and suppression
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Good democracies include their poorest citizens. The UK excludes them'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published