Labor MP Charlotte Nichols steps up her attack on her own party

Labor MP Charlotte Nichols yesterday escalated her attacks on her own party for not acting quickly enough against alleged sex predators.

She told The Mail on Sunday that “Labour should and could do better” in dealing with serious allegations against its own MPs.

The lawsuit comes after Labor MP Geraint Davies was suspended last week over allegations of “completely unacceptable conduct”.

Two formal complaints have now been lodged against the Swansea West MP, although he has said he does not accept the allegations against him.

Warrington North MP Ms Nichols said last week the party had previously opted not to crack down on other MPs.

The row comes as MPs prepare to vote later this month on formally banning any colleague facing “credible” allegations of sexual abuse from the Houses of Parliament in Westminster.

Originally, the House of Commons was to consider plans to ban any MP officially charged with a crime by the police.

However, sources told the newspaper last night that the proposal is now likely to be significantly tightened – with a lowering of the ban threshold for anyone facing credible charges of serious misconduct.

This would involve a “risk-based approach” whereby a panel of experts would assess whether an accused MP posed a threat to others in the estate. However, there are also proposals to initially apply the new regulation for a trial period of 18 months.

Last night, sources close to the leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, vigorously denied that she had advocated the much lower threshold for a ban once an MP has been formally charged.

Under current rules, MPs suspected of having sex predators are voluntarily absent from the House of Commons, usually at the Speaker’s private request.

Even under the stricter ban proposals, the politicians concerned would still be entitled to proxy voting during the investigation of their case.

The Labor Party was asked to comment last night.