The Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, has said the former Chief Whip Simon Hart has broken “an unwritten code” by releasing a book about his time in Government.
Stuart Andrew, who previously served as an Opposition Chief Whip, said he’d take secrets he’d been told by colleagues to his grave.
In an interview with Gloria De Piero, Andrew, the Tory MP for Daventry, was pressed as to what he thought about Hart’s decision to publish the bombshell new memoir Ungovernable.
Speaking exclusively to GB News, he said: “I have to say I take the personal view that when people come to see me, I keep it absolutely confidential. I said when I was a whip, whether it be a whip or deputy chief whip or chief whip, that when colleagues sat and talked and told me stuff, it’s between me and them. And that’s how I will keep it.
In an interview with Gloria De Piero, Stuart Andrew was pressed as to what he thought about Hart’s decision to publish the bombshell new memoir Ungovernable
GB News
“Look, I love Simon to bits, but there is a sort of unwritten code, not just within the Conservative Whips office – but all whips offices. MPs, you know, they face a really challenging career. And I know that’s not a popular thing to say, but, the pressures on them and their families are enormous. And there are times when things go wrong.
“I will take all of those conversations I had with colleagues, on a whole variety of issues, to my grave with me.”
Andrew’s comments formed part of a candid interview which was broadcast by GB News on Saturday.
In it, the MP, who is openly gay, recalls how he was once beaten unconscious in a homophobic attack, which also saw his father attacked with a brick.
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Andrew’s comments formed part of a candid interview with Gloria De Piero on Saturday
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Recalling the incident which happened in Anglesey, north Wales, where he grew up, Andrew said: “My dad had come to visit Anglesey, and we all went for a family night out.
“My partner at the time and I decided to leave a bit earlier to go back to the family home we were staying in. And I was suddenly aware I was being followed by three guys, calling me ‘queer’, ‘Tory queer’. I wanted to get to the house as quickly as possible, but by the time I did, they had surrounded me.”
Reliving the attack, he said: “I turned around and one of them smacked me in the nose.
“Then another hit me on the temple. I don’t really remember much after that because I was knocked unconscious. What I heard afterwards was that I was on the floor and they were kicking me, punching me, and my dad and the rest of the family came around the corner and saw this and gave chase.
“The next thing I remember is coming round inside the house and being told my dad had chased them round the corner, and one of them was waiting with a brick in their hand and smashed his face with it.
“So he and I were put in the back of a police car and taken to the hospital. It was just horrific, to be honest with you. And it had a real impact. I remember sitting in the house thinking I didn’t want to go out.
“I was frightened to go outside in case someone else followed me. It was a pretty horrible experience. But you know what? I think it made me stronger in the end because I think, no, I am who I am, to coin the phrase. And, you know, I wasn’t going to be deterred by that horrible experience.”
Andrew also opened about another attack he fell victim to – this time to a rival MP when he was headbutted during a brawl in a House of Commons bar by Labour’s Eric Joyce in 2012.
Recalling what unfolded, he said: “I remember this MP was in the corner with a friend he’d clearly been drinking a lot throughout the day.
“I was with another colleague who had gone up to the bar to get a packet of crisps, and when he came back, I was standing in the way and he had asked him to move. At which point, he just lost it, and pushed my colleague against the wall.
“I stood up in defence of my colleague and the next thing I know, he’s got me pinned up against the wall.
“Two police officers or two security guards came in. They tried to restrain him, but he broke free from them and then headbutted me.
“Then all hell seemed to break loose because the police piled in. It was an unbelievable experience.”
Andrew Stuart also recalled the time a rival MP headbutted him during a brawl in a House of Commons bar
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That incident and others since – including a recent allegation of drink spiking – have led to calls for bars in and around the Commons to shut. But despite once being a victim himself, Andrew is against a ban.
He said: “I know there’s an investigation going on at the moment. So we’ll have to see what comes out of that. And actually the House has put in some extra measures for security. But I really don’t want to give the impression that all MPs are going to the bar and drinking all day.
“I see MPs working very long hours and, you know, have a bit of downtime at the end of it to mix with colleagues. And actually, do you know what, it’s really good for MPs from different parties to get to know each other.
“You build up those relationships and working friendships that I think are really important to our politics.
“So whilst what’s happened is unacceptable, I hope that we don’t go overboard because I think MPs getting to know each other on a personal level, and being able to identify shared interests that they have, so they can join forces in Parliament, makes that cross-party working really important.”