Sir Laurie Magnus, Rishi Sunak’s ethics adviser, has delivered his long-awaited report into Mark Spencer’s alleged Islamophobic comments. Spencer, the farming minister, faced claims from fellow Tory MP Nus Ghani that he had told her that her dismissal as a minister in 2020 was partly due to concerns about her ‘Muslimness’. But Sir Laurie has concluded that it is not possible to determine what the then-chief whip said, and criticised ‘shortcomings’ in Spencer’s response. Sir Laurie said:
Despite a review of considerable evidence, it has not been possible to draw a clear picture of what was discussed between Mr Spencer and Ms Ghani during two meetings which both agree took place on 4 and 23 March 2020. These discussions are central to the allegations made… Ms Ghani and Mr Spencer have differing accounts of these meetings, with different recollections of what was said. Each has provided evidence (including some contemporaneous notes) to support their respective accounts, but given the differing evidence presented to me, I am not able to conclude with sufficient confidence what was or was not said at these two meetings.
A score draw, in other words: unlike Sir Laurie’s January report into Nadhim Zahawi. Sunak is now able to retain the services of both Spencer and Ghani at Defra and Trade respectively. Both backed him in October’s leadership race. Spencer was a staunch supporter of the Prime Minister in the summer contest, too. However, Magnus did tell Sunak that Spencer ‘should have taken more care’ when briefing the then-prime minister, Boris Johnson, before his meeting with Ghani in July 2020, as Spencer gave an ‘inaccurate’ account by not listing one of his meetings with her – which was key to her claims. Sir Laurie says that:
Because incomplete information had been provided, Ms Ghani’s account was initially questioned and she had to make efforts to demonstrate to the then-prime minister that the meeting had, in fact, occurred. This added further difficulty to what Ms Ghani already found to be a stressful meeting… Given his influential position as the then chief whip, and the centrality of the information he had to supply, Mr Spencer should have taken more care when briefing the then prime minister.
Ghani has already posted a statement on Twitter thanking Sir Laurie and Rishi Sunak for concluding the matter after three years. She added that Sir Laurie’s report is clear that her evidence was ‘credible and consistent’. Sunak’s allies will hope that this draws a line under the affair and demonstrate his ability to heal the wounds opened under the Johnson premiership.
Comments