Probe into Tory MP clash with climate protester dropped
An investigation into a Tory MP’s altercation with climate change protester has been dropped.
Mark Field had been suspended as a Foreign Office minister by Theresa May after he manhandled Greenpeace activist Janet Barker at a high-profile dinner.
The Cabinet Office probe into whether Mr Field had breached the ministerial code has been dropped, as he was no longer a minister under the new Boris Johnson government.
A Number 10 source said Mr Johnson believed the incident should have been dealt with by Mrs May while she was still in office.
“Mark Field has now left the Government,” the source said.
“The current PM considers this issue was a matter for the previous PM concerning his conduct during his time as a minister under her appointment.”
The Cities of London and Westminster MP was a prominent supporter of Mr Johnson’s leadership rival Jeremy Hunt and it is no surprise he was sacked when the new Prime Minister appointed his Government.
Mr Field clashed with Ms Barker as Greenpeace protesters disrupted the black-tie Mansion House event in the City of London.
At the time of the incident in June, Ms Barker said she had been left “shaken up” after Mr Field grabbed her by the neck and marched her out of the room as Greenpeace staged a peaceful protest.
“I was armed with peer reviewed science – the message that we were giving out. That’s all I was armed with,” she said.
Mr Field said in a statement to ITV that he deeply regretted the incident.
He was also quoted as saying that “in the confusion many guests understandably felt threatened and when one protester rushed past me towards the top table I instinctively reacted”.