David Cameron told to purge bullying scandal Tories

David Cameron has been dragged into an escalating crisis as the scandal over alleged bullying inside the Conservative Party threatens to engulf his government.

The Prime Minister was urged to sack Lord Feldman, the Conservative Party chairman – who is one of his oldest friends in politics – over claims that the Tory leadership failed to stop abuse and intimidation within the party.

The row led to the surprise resignation of Grant Shapps, the international development minister, who quit the Government over a series of allegations that a senior election aide had bullied and blackmailed activists and MPs.

Ray Johnson, the father of a Tory activist believed to have committed suicide after being bullied, demanded a wider clear-out “of unsavoury characters” within the Conservative Party and urged Mr Cameron to “sacrifice” Lord Feldman.

The scandal centres on Mark Clarke, a former candidate to become a Tory MP, who ran a key part of the Conservatives’ general election campaign. He was appointed in July last year by Mr Shapps – then co-chairman of the Tory Party – as director of the RoadTrip 2015 campaign.

Mr Clarke, who denies any wrongdoing, was thrown out of the party for life on November 18 after being named as a bully in a letter written by party activist Elliott Johnson, 21. Mr Johnson was found dead on railway tracks in September.

The scandal will be an unwelcome distraction for the Prime Minister in a critical week in which he had planned to focus on the build-up to air strikes against terrorist targets in Syria.

But instead of setting out the case for acting against extremists, Mr Cameron was confronted with questions over the scandal during a press conference at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Malta.

The Prime Minister refused to give his support to Mr Shapps and two hours later, the minister quit. In his resignation letter, Mr Shapps insisted “the buck should stop with me” but the father of Elliott Johnson called on Mr Cameron to purge the party’s HQ.

Mr Shapps’s fate was sealed by the release of a letter from Baroness Warsi, his predecessor as Tory chairman, which showed complaints about Mr Clarke were made as long ago as January and had been ignored.

Yesterday, Mr Johnson heaped further pressure on Mr Cameron to “clean up” Tory central office.

“David Cameron has done nothing,” Mr Johnson said.

“Grant Shapps should have resigned several weeks ago. It’s typical of these politicians, they cling on to the greasy pole for as long as they can,” he said.

“But there are others involved and we need to ensure there’s a clear-out of all these unsavoury characters at Conservative headquarters.

"There are other people involved in this scandal and we’ll take one pin down at a time if need be. He [Cameron] must now come forward and sacrifice his friend Lord Feldman and make sure Conservative HQ is cleaned up.”

Mr Clarke, 38, a consultant at Unilever, organised busloads of young activists to tour the country to campaign for the Conservatives in key constituencies as director of the RoadTrip 2015 campaign.

The crisis threatens to engulf another rising star of the party, Baroness Pidding, who was chairman of the RoadTrip 2015 movement and close to Mr Clarke.

In a letter to Lord Feldman, Mr Johnson suggested Baroness Pidding, deputy chairman of the Conservative party board, may have been “the source of leaked information to Clarke” allegedly “revealing the identities” of activists who had made complaints against him.

Baroness Pidding denies any wrongdoing. “My work with RoadTrip 2015 alongside Mark Clarke was purely to improve the party’s electoral prospects,” she said.

“I neither witnessed nor was alerted to any behaviour that might have suggested anything untoward or unwelcome to do with Mr Clarke or anyone else.”

Senior MPs have warned that the party must brace itself for further scandals. One senior MP said: “The real issue now is if Clarke realises he’s finished and comes out.

“He knows an awful lot of stuff and has quite a lot on MPs, I’m sure. Clarke now has nothing to lose and he will take people down.”

The MP suggested Lord Feldman would remain protected by Mr Cameron.

“No one in politics is entirely untouchable, but Feldman is the nearest thing to it,” said the MP.

Mr Shapps said in his resignation letter: “During this summer and autumn, there have been widely reported, very serious allegations made about the conduct of this former activist, who has subsequently been expelled from the party.

“I appreciate that there are ongoing coroner and party investigations under way, yet whatever the outcome of these processes, I doubt any of this will bring much comfort to the Johnson family whose loss is simply unimaginable.

“Although neither the party nor I can find any record of written allegations of bullying, sexual abuse or blackmail made to the Chairman’s office prior to the election, I cannot help but feel that the steady stream of those who raised smaller, more nuanced, objections should have perhaps set alarm bells ringing sooner.

“In the end, I signed that letter appointing Mark Clarke ‘director of RoadTrip’ and I firmly believe that whatever the rights and wrongs of a serious case like this, responsibility should rest somewhere.

“Given the very serious nature of what has subsequently occurred and my role in appointing Mr Clarke, I cannot help but conclude that the only right course of action is for me to step down as a minister in your government.”

Downing Street has said Mr Cameron had now written to Mr Johnson expressing his condolences.

Mr Johnson said on Saturday night he had still to receive any letter from the Prime Minister.

In his reply to Mr Shapps, Mr Cameron wrote that he had been “right to pay tribute to Elliott Johnson and his family in your letter”.

He added: “It is entirely understandable that they want answers, and it is very important that the inquiry under way establishes the facts.”

Grant Shapps' resignation letter in full

Dear Prime Minister,

In July 2014 I gave a second chance to former candidate Mark Clarke. Having been removed from the candidates list following the 2010 election, Clarke had gone on to establish a campaigning organisation called RoadTrip2015. He presented himself as having learned from his past experience, being more mature and wanting to prove himself again. After some discussion, I appointed him in order to incorporate RoadTrip into our wider campaign. The aim being to better coordinate his activity with our rapidly expanding Team2015 target-seat operation.

During this summer and autumn, there have been widely reported, very serious allegations made about the conduct of this former activist, who has subsequently been expelled from the Party. I appreciate that there are ongoing coroner and Party investigations underway, yet whatever the outcome of these processes, I doubt any of this will bring much comfort to the Johnson family whose loss is simply unimaginable.

Although neither the Party nor I can find any record of written allegations of bullying, sexual abuse or blackmail made to the Chairman’s office prior to the election, I cannot help but feel that the steady stream of those who raised smaller, more nuanced, objections should have perhaps set alarm bells ringing sooner. In the end, I signed that letter appointing Mark Clarke ‘Director of RoadTrip’ and I firmly believe that whatever the rights and wrongs of a serious case like this, responsibility should rest somewhere. Over the past few weeks – as individual allegations have come to light – I have come to the conclusion that the buck should stop with me.

Given the very serious nature of what has subsequently occurred and my role in appointing Mr Clarke, I cannot help but conclude that the only right course of action is for me to step down as a Minister in your government.

It has been an enormous honour to serve in your government which is making tremendous progress in taking Britain forward. You will have my full support from the backbenches, where I will also continue to work for my Welwyn Hatfield constituents who have elected me to serve.

But more than anything, I am deeply shocked and saddened by the recent death of Elliott Johnson and my thoughts are with his friends and family.

Yours ever,

The Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP

David Cameron's response to Grant Shapps' resignation letter

Dear Grant,

Thank you for your letter today, offering your resignation from the Government.

I know that this will have been a very difficult decision for you to make, and something you will have given a great deal of thought to over recent days. I understand your reasons for stepping down and accept your decision.

You are right to pay tribute to Elliot Johnson and his family in your letter and our thoughts and prayers remain with them all at this incredibly difficult time. As you say, their pain and grief are simply unimaginable and there are no words – no matter how well meaning – that can possibly bring them comfort after the tragedy of the death of their son. It is entirely understandable that they want answers, and it is very important that the inquiry underway establishes the facts.

You have served on the Conservative Front Bench continuously for eight years, in both Opposition and Government. Always committed to the brief you held and with a seemingly unremitting amount of energy to bring to your work, you have made a big contribution.

As Shadow Housing Minister and then Minister of State for Housing and Local Government at the Department for Communities and Local Government, you have left a legacy to be proud of. By chairing the Cross-Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness, you helped introduce the ‘No Second Night Out’ policy, to prevent rough sleeping across the country. I know that this is a policy you personally championed and took great pride in. You also introduced the New Homes Bonus, which paved the way for subsequent housing policy, rewarding local authorities for local housebuilding.

More recently, I know how much you have put into your role at the Department for International Development. I am extremely grateful to you for covering duties at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office too. This has been a brief you personally care a great deal about, and you have worked with typical enthusiasm helping to deliver on our aid commitments.

However, you have been a dedicated member of the Party for much longer, holding leadership positions for almost a decade before your election to Parliament. As Party Chairman, you were able to apply your previous business experience to our campaigning and worked night and day to help deliver this year’s election victory – the first Conservative majority since 1992.

Above all, you have been a loyal and trusted supporter of mine from the very beginning. I will always remember that. You have made a lasting contribution to the work of the Government, but you have also been a faithful servant of our party, and I know you have much more to give in the years ahead.

With best wishes,

David