UK trade minister sacked over ‘serious misconduct’ claim

British trade minister Conor Burns has been sacked from the government after a complaint of serious misconduct.

Downing Street said that Prime Minister Liz Truss had asked Burns to leave the government following allegations of inappropriate behavior during a party conference in Birmingham earlier this week.

The prime minister "took direct action on being informed of this allegation," according to Downing Street.

He was appointed to the position by Truss less than a month ago, and his appointment was reviewed with the approval of the Cabinet ethics team.

Meanwhile, Burns accused the party of a "rush to judgment," but noted, "I will fully cooperate with the Party's inquiry and look forward to clearing my name."

Burns was one of the allies and close friends of former premier Boris Johnson and helped him to overcome the various scandals he faced during his premiership.

He was previously forced to resign as trade minister in 2020 after he was found to have used his position to intimidate a member of the public.

His ouster now follows a series of scandals involving the behavior of Conservative MPs, including former Deputy Prime Minister Chris Pincher.

Another Tory MP who has made headlines in recent months is Neil Parish, who resigned after admitting watching pornography in the House of Commons.

Crimes and sexual misconduct are among the moral problems that British parliamentarians and officials have been accused of in recent years.

Imran Ahmed Khan, the former Conservative MP for Wakefield who was suspended from office in June 2021, was convicted in May 2022 of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy.

Former Conservative cabinet minister Owen Paterson also resigned as an MP in late 2021 after outrage over paid lobbying.

Another Conservative MP, David Warburton, who represents Somerton and Frome, was suspended following an investigation into sexual harassment by the House of Commons Independent Complaints and Complaints Commission.

Chris Bryant, Labour MP and chairman of the standards committee, highlighted the high number of misconduct cases in parties since the 2019 election.

He said that in the British Parliament, 16 representatives had been suspended or removed from their positions due to committing various violations and at least 5 representatives were also under investigation and legal investigation.

Bryant added that this was completely unprecedented in the history of the British Parliament.

Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, criticized Truss’s refusal to appoint an ethics adviser in light of the allegations against a minister. “After just a month as prime minister, Liz Truss’s government is already beset by scandal,” she said.

“This deeply disturbing revelation is the latest in a long line of serious misconduct allegations, and raises serious questions not only about yet another minister but about the prime minister’s judgement in refusing to appoint an independent ethics adviser.”

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