PORN AND RED
MP Neil Parish’s wife ‘very embarrassed’ by him ‘watching porn in Commons’ but vows to stick by him
THE wife of a Tory MP accused of watching porn in the House of Commons revealed she is "very" embarrassed by her husband - but has vowed to stick by him.
Susan Parish said it would be "stupid" to let Neil Parish's ogling come between them after he was named as Westminster's 'porngate' culprit on Friday.
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The Tory MP has since admitted he watched x-rated material twice in the House of Commons - and announced his resignation today.
He said it was a "moment of madness" and sensationally claimed he had been trying to look at tractors on the first occasion.
But despite a fevered 'whodunnit' in Westminster this week, the 65-year-old grandad failed to let his partner of 40 years know the allegations were about him - until yesterday afternoon.
His wife Susan told : “It was all very embarrassing. My breath was taken away, frankly.
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"People shouldn’t be looking at pornography. He would never just sit there with people looking. These ladies were quite right to be as cross as they were because I was cross, too."
Mrs Parish slammed porn as "degrading' and "demeaning", adding "it's just so stupid" and she has "no idea what happens in these circumstances".
But she said: “I think it would be a bit stupid (to let it come between us). As I say, I’m fairly tough. You’ve got to carry on, haven’t you?
“If you were mad with every man who looked at pornography, I think there would be very few men in the world who have not had their wives going on at them."
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Initially the bullish Tory MP said he would wait for an investigation into his conduct by Westminster but has now resigned.
Conservative bosses have stripped him of the party whip pending a probe into the bombshell claims from two female colleagues.
He also denied watching the pornography in a way where he hoped other people would see it.
Rushing home to explain himself yesterday, Mr Parish told his wife: “I’m sorry you married a f***ing idiot."
And he said today: "What I did was absolutely wrong. I was wrong, I was stupid, I lost sense of mind.
"I make a full apology. A total full apology. It was not my intention to intimidate."
It comes as female Cabinet minister and Attorney General Suella Braverman accused some male MPs of behaving like "animals" as she called for an urgent discussion about moral standards at Westminster.
Approached by The Sun outside his Somerset farmhouse last night, Mr Parish said: "It was a complete mistake and I will man up to it as they say.
"My main concern at the moment is my very supportive wife. Stupidity rages."
He has until now held his Tory stronghold seat of Tiverton and Honiton which he has served since 2010.
I’m sorry you married a f***ing idiot
MP Neil Parish to his wife, Susan
Since The Sun revealed the explosive accusations on Wednesday morning, Tory whips closed ranks to keep the culprit's name secret.
Mr Parish did not even out himself when quizzed about "porngate" during a live telly interview earlier this week.
With a straight face, he denied there was a culture of bad behaviour in Parliament - although admitted some MPs did "step over the line".
He admitted last night: "I wasn’t going to until such time as I had referred myself to the authorities.”
But after innocent Tory MPs were dragged into the frenzied Westminster game of Guess Who he met with Chief Whip Chris Heaton-Harris and they agreed to go public.
He said he had been unable to call his wife to let her know he was the mystery MP because he had been at a constituency surgery and his phone was flat.
Parish now faces a probe by Parliament's Standards Commissioner Kathryn Stone - who has the power to recommend expulsion from the Commons.
And it was also confirmed a separate probe by Westminster's Independent Complaints Grievance System has been launched, meaning at least one of the female witnesses has lodged a complaint.
In a statement, Mr Parish said he will be "cooperating fully with any investigation" and will "continue to perform my duties as MP".
But he faced calls to quit immediately. Longest-serving MP Harriet Harman blasted: "He should resign immediately if that's what he's done. "Why make these women MPs go through the process of having to report to the standards committee?
"Why make the standards committee do an investigation when by his actions, he's not only shamed himself and his party but cast a stain on the whole of the House of Commons?
Ex-Tory Cabinet Minister Karen Bradley urged Mr Parish to steer clear of Parliament while he remains under the microscope.
Labour's shadow Commons leader Thangham Debbonaire accused Tory chiefs of trying to "cover up" their MP's "disgusting behaviour".
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The porn saga blew up on Tuesday night when two female Tories claimed they had seen a male colleague watching porn in the Commons at a meeting of women MPs.
After The Sun exposed the shocking claims the next morning the floodgates opened to MPs sharing their own horror stories of Westminster's pervy culture.
Top female Cabinet Minister Anne Marie-Trevelyan yesterday described being "pinned up against a wall" by a lecherous male colleague.
The Trade Sec said as a "plain-speaking woman" she has been at the "sharp end of misogyny".
She said: "We might describe it as wandering hands. We might describe it as, a number of years ago, being pinned up against a wall by a male MP - who is no longer in the House - declaring that I must want him because he was a powerful man.
"These sorts of things, the power abuses that a very small minority thank goodness of male colleagues show is completely unacceptable."
She said some MPs were "repeat offenders" at trying to make unwanted advances and urged men to "keep your hands in your pockets".
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Her horrific experiences have been echoed by female colleagues, including fellow Cabinet Minister Ms Braverman who described some MPs behaving like wild animals in the parliamentary bars.
It has sparked fresh demands for a Commons booze ban - but Ms Trevelyan rejected such action and instead promoted "responsible drinking";.
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