Earlier this month Ben Harris-Quinney stepped down as the chairman of the Bow Group, following internal frictions over the Conservative think tank’s partial Ukip endorsement ahead of the election.
Now Harris-Quinney, who was elected as a Tory councillor earlier this month, has been suspended from the Conservative Party. In an email circulated to staff, a Conservative spokesman reveals the suspension is pending an investigation into the circumstances in which he joined the party ahead of running as a council candidate:
‘Ben Harris-Quinney has been suspended from the Party with immediate effect pending an urgent investigation by the Disciplinary Committee on behalf of the Board. The investigation will also cover the circumstances in which he was able to rejoin his local Association on 5th May 2015 having ceased to be a member since April 2013, and stand as a council candidate on behalf of Party.’
This comes after a complaint was made to the Conservative Party’s disciplinary committee over comments Harris-Quinney made in Russia about gay people.
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