UK: Neil Parish resigns as MP after admitting watching porn in the House of Commons

The 65-year-old MP and in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet Neil Parish has resigned as a Tory MP after admitting to watching pornography in the House of Commons chamber twice, in what he described as a “moment of madness,” the Guardian reported. He was suspended after the act was reported. The Conservatives suspended Neil Parish on Friday after he reported himself to parliament’s standards commissioner, reported Reuters.

The Tiverton and Honiton MP, who is a farmer, said he first watched adult content by mistake after looking at tractors on his mobile phone. However, he admitted the second time was deliberate.

Speaking to the BBC, the MP was in tears to admitting what he was done wrong, “I was not proud of what I was doing,” he told BBC South West. “I’m not going to defend what I did … it was absolutely wrong,” he added.

“The situation was that – funnily enough it was tractors I was looking at,” he said. “I did get into another website that had a very similar name and I watched it for a bit which I shouldn’t have done. But my crime – biggest crime – is that on another occasion I went in a second time,” said the MP.

“I make a full apology. A total full apology. It was not my intention to intimidate.”

Two female colleagues, on Tuesday, reported they had seen him looking at pornography while sitting near them. On Friday, Mr Parish had the whip suspended and referred himself to the standards committee, but ignored calls to resign immediately.

Who is Neil Parish?

A farmer by background, Neil Parish had been the MP for Tiverton and Honiton since 2010. Before that, he was an MEP.

He was chair of the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee and as such also sat on the powerful Liaison Committee.

Mr Parish campaigned to remain in the EU as he said he believed that was “the best option for British agriculture”. However, he promised to “fight tooth and nail” to get the best Brexit deal for farmers.