In February 2017, a political controversy emerged in the United Kingdom involving the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Diane Abbott and Conservative MP David Davis. [1] It emerged following reports of an incident involving the two in a parliament bar. Whether or not the alleged interaction had been a whisper or kiss was speculated in the media. Reactions included discussions on sexism in parliament as well as the political implications on Brexit.
Diane Abbott and David Davis were both elected to the House of Commons in the 1987 general election. Abbott represents the Central London constituency of Hackney North and Stoke Newington while Davis represented Haltemprice and Howden, a rural constituency in the East Riding of Yorkshire. [2] Both MPs voted against the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 and in 2008, Abbott made an award-winning speech in parliament on civil liberties which Davis praised as "one of the finest I have heard since being elected to the House of Commons". [3]
In the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum resulted in 51.9% of the votes being in favour of Brexit. Abbott voted remain while Davis voted leave. Following the referendum Abbott was appointed Shadow Home Secretary and Davis was appointed Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union. The referendum had divided the two parties on Brexit, particularly Labour MPs who had triggered a snap leadership election in late 2016. [4]
Abbott voted for the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Act 2017 “as a loyal supporter of Jeremy Corbyn". [5] Abbotts position on Brexit had been under scrutiny after missing a previous vote. [6] A week previously she had been taken ill. [7] She voted for the triggering of Article 50. [8] She did so while opposing the "Hard Brexit" proposed by then-Prime Minister Theresa May. [9] Abbott had been under pressure by local Liberal Democrats to vote against due to the fact 78% of electors in the London Borough of Hackney voted remain. [10] The vote passed by 498 to 114 with a large majority of 384. [11]
The day following the Article 50 vote on 8 February, reports emerged that David Davis had attempted to kiss Diane Abbott in the Strangers' Bar in the Palace of Westminster, who had reportedly told him to "f*** off". [12] Davis had allegedly greeted a group Abbott was with as he passed which included Baroness Shami Chakrabarti. [13] Davis had been seen by journalists who alleged he had been leaning in for a kiss when Abbott recoiled before he walked off laughing. [14] Some sources alleged that Davis appeared to attempt a light-hearted embrace with Abbott to thank her for the support in the vote, while other alleged it looked more like an attempted advance suggesting the interaction was more like an “air kiss”. [15] A spokesman for Davis said that he respected Abbott and had been joking. [16]
The scandal developed when private text messages allegedly sent by Davis were leaked to The Mail on Sunday . [17] Davis said that he had whispered "thank you for the vote" referencing the three line whip on the Brexit legislation, and that he would not attempt to hug or kiss Abbott because he is "not blind". He then made an apparent reference to a Specsavers advert. [18]
Chuka Umunna called for Davis to apologise. [19] Davis apologised to Abbott; [20] but was accused of sexism. [21] Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales Shami Chakrabarti, who had witnessed the incident, appeared on Peston on Sunday and said "I think David Davis has been very silly. He was sexist and he was patronising". [22] Abbott revealed she had received rape and death threats following the incident. [23]
Stella Creasy branded the behaviour “sexual harassment" and Emily Thornberry compared Davis to Donald Trump. [24] Jess Phillips said Davis was “probably drunk on Brexit smugness" adding “he wouldn’t do it to David Cameron or George Osborne, so he shouldn’t do it to Diane. It’s unacceptable". [13]
The incident was debated on The Wright Stuff between MP Dawn Butler and Christine Hamilton. [25] Abbott was defended by Stephen Bush for New Statesman writing in defence of her rebuffing. [26] Skylar Baker-Jordan wrote in HuffPost that Abbott had been a victim of misogynoir. [27]
In the context of Brexit, the controversy was overshadowed by the resignations of Rachael Maskell and Dawn Butler from the Shadow Cabinet ahead of Article 50 vote. [28] They had done so in protest of Jeremy Corbyns three line whip. [29] They were followed by Clive Lewis who was one of 50 MPs to defy the Labour whip on a later vote. [30]
In August 2017, the former chief of staff at the Brexit Department claimed he had witnessed Davis being "drunk, bullying and inappropriate". [31]
Diane Julie Abbott is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987. She served in the Shadow Cabinet of Jeremy Corbyn as Shadow Home Secretary from 2016 to 2020 and is an advisor to the Privy Council. She was the first black woman elected to parliament and is the longest-serving black MP.
Hilary James Wedgwood Benn is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland since 2024. A member of the Labour Party, he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds South, formerly Leeds Central, since 1999. He previously served in various ministerial positions under Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown from 2001 to 2010.
Sir David Michael Davis is an English Conservative Party politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Goole and Pocklington. He was previously the MP for Haltemprice and Howden and, before that, for Boothferry, where he was first elected in 1987. He served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2003 to 2008 and Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union from 2016 to 2018. Davis was sworn of the Privy Council in the 1997 New Year Honours, while surviving as Minister of State for Europe, a role he held from 1994 to 1997.
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Dawn Petula Butler is a British Labour Party politician who is member of parliament (MP) for Brent East. She previously served as MP for Brent Central (2015–2024) and Brent South (2005–2010).
Chuka Harrison Umunna is a British businessman and former politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Streatham from 2010 until 2019. A former member of the Labour Party, he was part of the Shadow Cabinet from 2011 to 2015. He left Labour in February 2019, when he resigned to form The Independent Group, later Change UK, along with six other MPs. Later in 2019, he left Change UK and, after a short time as an independent MP, joined the Liberal Democrats. In the 2019 general election, he failed to be re-elected, and did not return to the House of Commons.
Owen Smith is a British lobbyist and former Labour Party politician. Smith was Member of Parliament (MP) for Pontypridd from 2010 to 2019.
Sarah Deborah Champion is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Rotherham since 2012.
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire is a British politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bristol West between 2015 and 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she served as Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport from 2023 until 2024. She was previously Shadow Secretary of State for Housing from 2020 to 2021 and Shadow Leader of the House of Commons from 2021 to 2023.
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Joanna Meriel Stevens is a Welsh politician serving as Secretary of State for Wales since 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she has been a Member of Parliament (MP) since 2015, representing Cardiff East since 2024, having previously represented Cardiff Central.
Jessica Rose Phillips is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Yardley since 2015. A member of the Labour Party, she has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls since July 2024.
Clive Anthony Lewis is a British Labour politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Norwich South since 2015. Lewis was a candidate for Leader of the Labour Party in the 2020 leadership election. He is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group parliamentary caucus.
Jeremy Corbyn assumed the position of Leader of the Opposition after being elected as leader of the Labour Party on 12 September 2015; the election was triggered by Ed Miliband's resignation following the Labour Party's electoral defeat at the 2015 general election when David Cameron formed a majority Conservative government. The usual number of junior shadow ministers were also appointed.
Jeremy Corbyn was elected as Leader of the Opposition in September 2015, following the resignation of Ed Miliband after Labour's defeat at the 2015 general election. Disillusioned by a lack of a left-wing voice in the 2015 Labour Party leadership contest, Corbyn stood on an anti-austerity platform. Of the candidates who stood, Corbyn received the fewest parliamentary nominations. Many who nominated him said they had done so not to support his candidacy, but to widen the debate by including a socialist voice. However, Corbyn soon became the frontrunner and was elected with a landslide of 59%.
The European Union Act 2017 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to empower the Prime Minister to give to the Council of the European Union the formal notice – required by Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union – for starting negotiations for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union. It was passed following the result of the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum held on 23 June in which 51.9% of voters voted to leave the European Union.
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On 26–29 June 2016, 21 members of the Shadow Cabinet resigned from the frontbench. Following the Leave result in the referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union, Jeremy Corbyn faced heavy criticism for the perceived reluctance of his involvement in the campaign to Remain and his perceived weakness as leader of the Labour Party.
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