It has been determined that, the Scottish National Party’s MP, John Nicolson, did not harass former UK government minister Nadine Dorries. Ms. Dorries had expressed her displeasure with John Nicolson’s conduct to House of Commons committee, and with tweets that he wrote, liked, or retweeted about her. Ms. Dorries was referred to as a “vacuous goon” in the liked tweets.
Following a review by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards that supported Ms. Dorries’ allegation against him, Mr. Nicolson had filed an appeal to the panel.
A panel of independent experts concluded that, Mr. Nicolson did not violate the bullying and harassment policies of the parliament. The panel claimed that, Daniel Greenberg, the commissioner, overlooked the fact that, the bullying and harassment policy was not created to “prevent vigorous opposition to the government.”
Additionally, it claimed that, Daniel Greenberg did not consider Ms. Dorries’ own history of tweeting, which the panel deemed relevant when determining whether it was reasonable for her to conclude Mr. Nicolson’s actions as bullying.
Furthermore, it claimed that, the commissioner did not properly review the timeline preceding up to Ms. Dorries’ allegation against Mr. Nicolson, and had overlooked the fact that, she had previously filed comparable complaints that had been rejected.
“A close examination of that evidence might have shed light on the true subjective reaction to the tweets on the part of the complainant, and whether her reaction was reasonable. For those reasons, the decision had to be set aside.”
The Independent Panel’s Report.
However, the Panel’s report also revealed that, instances of comparable behavior between MPs and staff members or between MPs in various settings, may constitute violations of the bullying and harassment policy.
“Anyone who experiences behavior not in line with the parliamentary behavior code will have their case considered on its own individual merits,” the statement continued. The panel added that, Mr. Nicolson was “unwise” in liking or retweeting several of the tweets in question.
In contrast to the investigator’s findings that Mr. Nicolson did not violate the bullying and harassment policy, the commissioner’s ruling to sustain Mr. Dorries’ complaint has been made.
Moreover, in his defence against the Parliamentary Commissioner for Conduct’s report, Mr. Nicolson, claimed that, the commissioner’s report was “political and personal” rather than real. The decision, according to him, was taken as a result of his “effectiveness in exposing the complainant’s weakness as a minister and exposing problems with her own record, which might militate against her being accorded a peerage.”
The Ochil and South Perthshire MP was accused by Ms. Dorries Nadine of tweeting, like, or retweeting insulting remarks about her, for over 168 times during the course of a single day in November 2021. According to reports, Ms. Dorries was called “grotesque,” “as thick as two short planks,” and a “mendacious, vacuous goon” in the liked tweets.
At the time, she served the portfolio as the Secretary of State, while Mr. Nicolson served as the Scottish National Party’s (SNP) spokesman. After blaming “dark forces” for removing her name from Boris Johnson’s resignation honors list, Ms. Dorries recently stated that, she would be stepping down as a Conservative MP.
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