Tag Archives: portsmouth south

Mike Hancock to stand as Independent candidate in Portsmouth South.

The BBC reports that Mike Hancock has announced that he is to stand as an independent candidate in Portsmouth South. Hancock  had the whip withdrawn last year after apologising for inappropriate conduct towards a constituent.

He told BBC News: “I’m going to stand for sure, I’ve made this decision because my health is so much better and I think I owe it to a lot of people who have supported me.

“Once you’ve been an MP for as long as I have it’s hard to just walk away.

“I think if enough people realise that I’m like everyone, I’m a fallible human being who made a mistake but paid a very high price for it… I think I could .”

He will go head-to-head with his former party colleague Gerald Vernon-Jackson who will be standing for the Liberal Democrats.

But Mr Hancock said he felt he “did not owe anything” to his old party and was not concerned about taking their votes.

You have to wonder if the rules on resettlement allowances were a factor in his decision. MPs who lose their seats are entitled to a payment of up to six months salary. The qualifications are thus:

Posted in News | Also tagged | 12 Comments

++ Mike Hancock MP quits Lib Dems

mike hancockMike Hancock, elected as Lib Dem MP for Portsmouth South in 2010 but suspended from the party following allegations of sexual harassment made by a constituent, has resigned from the party, according to the Independent:

(Hancock) spent almost five years denying that he had sexually harassed a vulnerable constituent until eventually he admitted in court that he had behaved in a way that made her “feel deeply uncomfortable and discriminated against”.

He was suspended from the Liberal Democrats’ parliamentary group and lost his seat on Portsmouth Council. The party has

Posted in News | Also tagged | 7 Comments

Mike Hancock resigns from Lib Dem cabinet on Portsmouth City Council

Three new developments today in Portsmouth as the local Lib Dem party and city council group work out how to deal with the allegations of sexual assault against Mike Hancock, which he denies.

Twelve days ago, Hancock, who had already stood down from the party whip at Westminster, was suspended by the national Lib Dems, making him ineligible to be re-selected as Portsmouth South’s MP. However, he controversially retained his post in the Lib Dem-run cabinet as an independent councillor, apparently on a tied 10-10 vote among the city council group. This prompted the resignation of Eleanor

Posted in News | Also tagged , , , , and | 6 Comments

Mike Hancock wins courts case over paedophile allegation

The BBC reports:

A rival who falsely claimed a Liberal Democrat MP was a paedophile has been convicted of attempting to affect a result in the general election.

Les Cummings, 66, made the false statement about Portsmouth South MP Mike Hancock.

Mr Hancock had strenuously denied the allegations made in an election leaflet pamphlet.

Cummings, who stood for the Justice and Anti-Corruption Party, was fined £500 at Southampton Magistrates’ Court.

He had falsely written on the flyer: “Mike Hancock is a paedophile.”

It then showed a picture of Mr Hancock with children and the words: “Would you let him get this close to your children?”

This …

Posted in Election law and News | Also tagged , , and | 7 Comments

Mike Hancock MP “horrified” by paedophile slur leaflet

The BBC reports from Southampton Magistrates Court:

A Liberal Democrat MP has described allegations he was a paedophile as “absolutely untrue and offensive”.

Mike Hancock told Southampton Magistrates’ Court he was “horrified” by a leaflet published during last year’s general election.

The court heard Les Cummings, who was standing against the MP, had written: “Mike Hancock is a paedophile”.

He denies making a false statement with the purpose of affecting the result of the election in Portsmouth South.

Mr Cummings, 66, from Portsmouth, is accused of publishing the leaflet last April, while he was standing against Mr Hancock as an independent for the Justice

Posted in Election law and News | Also tagged , and | Leave a comment

Mike Hancock MP’s personal statement about police questioning

Mike Hancock MP has published a statement on his website, confirming that he was voluntarily questioned by police yesterday, following allegations made last month by one of his constituents.

The statement in full:

I can confirm that I was questioned on Tuesday 12 October by officers of the Hampshire Police in relation to allegations made against me by one individual. I attended the police station voluntarily, cooperated fully and answered all questions that were asked.

Normal processes now have to be followed by the police, which I entirely understand.

In the circumstances, and in accordance with legal advice,

Posted in News | Also tagged | 16 Comments
Advert



Recent Comments

  • Simon R
    @Michael: You appear to be questioning my liberalism. But, like it or not, the nature of the Universe is that people have to work because - bluntly, if everyone...
  • Michael BG
    Peter Martin, I do accept that the economy needs people to do paid work to work. However, each individual makes choices and are not therefore forced to pay t...
  • Roger Lake
    This is -- or ought to be!-- amazing! And alarming. So far there are 12 reasoned responses to my title, most of them finding fault with my recommended propos...
  • Steve Trevethan
    Might being sufficiently frightened of the main stream media, to the extent that a political party does not tell reasonable approximations of (socio-economic) t...
  • Geoff Reid
    The usual good sense from Peter Wrigley. The Conservatives and their media cheer leaders cannot get their heads round the possibility of higher taxes helping to...