An SNP MP, John Nicolson, has been cleared of bullying Nadine Dorries despite his liking of tweets that described her as “grotesque” and a “vacuous goon.”
Nicolson, who represents Ochil and South Perthshire, had appealed a ruling by the parliamentary standards commissioner that his conduct on Twitter amounted to bullying following a complaint made by the former culture secretary, Dorries.
However, an independent expert panel overturned the previous ruling and pointed out comments made by Dorries on social media, including a statement where she said she would “nail [a journalist’s] balls to the floor using [their] front teeth.” The panel also noted that Dorries had made several baseless complaints of harassment or bullying that were ultimately rejected or dismissed.
The complaint from Dorries stemmed from a series of “disparaging” tweets that Nicolson, the SNP’s culture spokesperson, had liked and retweeted after her appearance at the Commons Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee in November 2021. Dorries formally complained to parliament’s independent complaints and grievance scheme (ICGS) almost a year later in October 2022, alleging that Nicolson’s liking of these tweets constituted bullying and harassment. She claimed that his behavior on social media, along with his actions in the House of Commons, constituted bullying and harassment.
An initial investigation recommended clearing Nicolson, but the standards commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, disagreed and concluded that Dorries had felt vulnerable, upset, undermined, humiliated, denigrated, or threatened by Nicolson’s conduct, and therefore, she had been bullied.
Nicolson appealed against the decision, arguing that the complaint was politically and personally motivated, as he had effectively exposed weaknesses in Dorries’ ministerial record and raised concerns that could impact her potential peerage. The independent panel agreed with Nicolson and found that Greenberg had not taken enough account of the “highly charged political context” of the complaint or Dorries’ use of strong language on Twitter.
The panel acknowledged that liking and retweeting tweets were not neutral acts and considered some of Nicolson’s actions unwise. It also highlighted that similar behaviour between politicians might not be acceptable in other professional settings.
In response to the panel’s decision, Dorries expressed disappointment and voiced concerns about the parliamentary process and the conduct of individual MPs. She suggested that if such behavior occurred in any other workplace governed by the rule of law, Nicolson would have been dismissed instantly.
Dorries had previously announced her decision to step down as an MP with immediate effect, but she has not yet formally left the Commons.
Join us in helping to bring reality and decency back by SUBSCRIBING to our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ1Ll1ylCg8U19AhNl-NoTg and SUPPORTING US where you can: Award Winning Independent Citizen Media Needs Your Help. PLEASE SUPPORT US FOR JUST £2 A MONTH https://dorseteye.com/donate/
