British PM Johnson denies groping allegations as party conference opens

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacts during the Convention of the North at the Magna Centre in Rotherham, Britain - Reuters

Manchester, England (Reuters): British Prime Minister Boris Johnson denied on Monday that he had inappropriately touched a female journalist 20 years ago, and said the public were more interested in hearing about his plans for public services.

As Johnson prepares to lead the United Kingdom out of the European Union on 31 October, his past relations with several women have come under scrutiny. The allegations overshadowed the Conservative Party’s annual conference which opened on Sunday.

Charlotte Edwardes, a columnist, wrote in The Sunday Times that Johnson had groped her at a lunch in 1999 when he was editor of The Spectator magazine.

“Under the table, I feel Johnson’s hand on my thigh. He gives it a squeeze,” Edwardes wrote. “His hand is high up my leg and he has enough inner flesh beneath his fingers to make me sit suddenly upright.”

Edwardes said that after the meal, she confided in another woman who had sat on the other side of Johnson. The other woman said Johnson had also groped her, Edwardes said.

Asked in a television interview if he had inappropriately touched her thigh as she reported, Johnson said: “No”.

When subsequently asked if she had made up the account, he replied: “I’m just saying what I said, and I think what the public want to hear is what we are doing for them and the country and for investment in ways of uniting the country.”

Asked if the allegations were overshadowing the conference, he said “Not at all. I think what the public want to hear is what we’re doing to bring the country together and get on with improving their lives.”

After a denial by a Downing Street spokesman, Edwardes said on Twitter: “If the prime minister doesn’t recollect the incident then clearly I have a better memory than he does.”

London’s Labour-run local government said on Friday it had referred Johnson to Britain’s police watchdog for potential investigation over allegations of misconduct involving a US businesswoman while he was mayor of London.