U.K. lawmaker resigns after watching porn in Parliament
NBCSep 09, 2022
UK Politician Resigns After Watching Porn in Parliament
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Image copyright: Richard Townsend/UK Parliament/AFP/Getty [via The New York Post]
The Facts
Conservative MP, Neil Parish, resigned from his role on Sat. after admitting he watched pornography in the House of Commons chamber.
The chairman of the House's Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee said he was attempting to access a tractor website when he found the adult content by mistake. However, he visited the site for a second time intentionally.
The Spin
Left narrative
The Tory party's resistance to taking disciplinary action against misbehaving MPs has facilitated a rampant culture of misogyny and harassment in Parliament. Working practices in Westminster are in dire need of overhaul to ensure that perpetrators of abusive and sexualized behavior are held to account.
Right narrative
The Conservative Party are committed to tackling Westminster sleaze and are taking significant steps to ensure that half of their MPs returned in the next election will be women. Achieving equal gender representation in the Commons will transform a culture in which women are "tolerated" to one in which they are, rightly, valued.
Cynical narrative
The raging culture of misogyny in Westminster isn't party specific. More than 50 MPs are facing complaints of sexual misconduct, and examples of inappropriate and exploitative behavior have been seen on both sides of the chamber. From patronizing and derogatory comments, to older MPs asking young researchers to "sit on their knee", it's no wonder women are calling time on the climate of discrimination at the heart of UK politics.
