Westminster is agog with whispers about who the Tory MPs are on a list of men and women alleged to be guilty of inappropriate sexual behaviour, sexual harassment and worse. Some names have been circulating for years, with many women across the Parliamentary Estate saying they have their own story about this MP or that minister. So why is it only now that there’s a threat to make the list public?
The Harvey Weinstein allegations have prompted women – and men – in every industry to realise that they don’t have to just grin and bear bad behaviour as though it’s just an unfortunate side-effect to having your dream job. The fact that there is a WhatsApp group of women who are co-ordinating their allegations is also a sign that people are starting to see that it’s better to stick your head above the parapet as a group, rather than individually, only to get shot down by the sort of people who dismiss any allegation as ‘harmless fun’, a ‘compliment’, or ‘hysteria’.
That casual attitude towards behaviour that is so obviously far more menacing and uncomfortable than clumsy come-ons is what has helped perpetuate the culture of inappropriate behaviour at Westminster.
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