Conor Burns has denied he has ever met Mel B after the singer suggested he should not be surprised he is facing a misconduct claim, and pointed to remarks she alleges he made to her in a lift.
The Spice Girl, whose full name is Melanie Brown, tweeted the MP in response to a statement he issued on Friday, in which he said he looked forward to clearing his name after being sacked from the Government and having the Conservative whip suspended.
Mr Burns said he would “fully co-operate” with a probe by the party, understood to be looking into allegations of inappropriate behaviour at the annual Tory conference.
Really?? Your shocked about this complaint??? Let me remind you what you said me in lift….. https://t.co/IaFuUrzzqL
— Melanie Brown MBE (@OfficialMelB) October 7, 2022
He said he was not given “any information about the complaint” nor was he asked to “provide any information” when he received a call from chief whip Wendy Morton to tell him the matter would be passed to Conservative Campaign Headquarters to investigate.
But Mel B, who attended the Tory conference to speak about domestic abuse at a fringe event hosted by The Sun and Women’s Aid, questioned whether he should be shocked by the claim.
Read more:
- Bournemouth West MP Conor Burns sacked as minister over allegation of 'inappropriate behaviour'
- Conor Burns accuses Tory party of 'rushing to judgment' over misconduct allegation
- "Innocent until proven guilty": Fellow Dorset MP has say on Bournemouth's Conor Burns
Quote-tweeting part of his statement, she wrote: “Really?? Your shocked about this complaint??? Let me remind you what you said me in lift…..”
Mr Burns, however, told the PA news agency he does not think he has ever met the singer.
“I believe I have never met Mel,” he said.
The Daily Echo contacted representatives for Mel B. They said there was no further comment on the matter.
We have also contacted Mr Burns over her tweet. We have not yet received a response.
The Prime Minister sacked Mr Burns from his post in the Department for International Trade on Friday following the complaint, as No 10 insisted “high standards of behaviour” must be maintained.
The MP – who now faces a Tory investigation – accused the party of rushing to judgment.
He was previously a minister in the Northern Ireland Office, and had been a staunch ally of former prime minister Boris Johnson.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article