I'd have slapped Stanley Johnson if he'd touched me, says minister

A CABINET minister today said she would have “slapped” Stanley Johnson if he had touched her inappropriately in the way alleged by a Tory MP.

- Rachael Burford and John Dunne

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan urged victims of similar behaviour to come forward and said she would “stand by” them.

On Monday Caroline Nokes accused the Prime Minister’s father of smacking her on the backside at a party conference in 2003, adding that she felt “ashamed” she had not done anything about it at the time. It prompted journalist Ailbhe Rea to accuse Mr Johnson, 81, of having “groped” her at the 2019 Tory conference. When asked what she would have done in response to the alleged touching, Ms Trevelyan told Sky News: “I would have probably slapped him.

“It would have been an instinctive response from me and I think Caroline will have shown great personal restraint if she quietly moved away.”