Charlotte Nichols MP takes aim at the Labour Party

Ms Nichols has lashed out at the Labour Party over its record of the handling of sexual misconduct allegations.

This is not the first time the Warrington North MP has spoken out regarding Westminster's culture of sexual misconduct, claiming that she was handed 'a list' of names to avoid when she entered Parliament in December 2019.

Ms Nichols made the comments during a Radio 4 interview (Image: Parliament TV)

Ms Nichols was speaking on the BBC's 'World at One' Radio 4 programme this afternoon, Friday, when she claimed that her party has failed to act on allegations of sexual misconduct several times.

She said that Labour had to be 'shamed' into pursuing allegations regarding Geraint Davies, the MP for Swansea West - this eventually led to Mr Davies' suspension from the party.

This came after party insiders blew the whistle over his alleged unwanted advances, directed toward younger female colleagues.

Ms Nichols claimed that suspending the Swansea West MP was 'damage limitation.'

She said: "It was damage limitation from the party's point of view.

"But they have known about this sort of behaviour - not just from him, but from others as well - for a very long time, and they have chosen not to act."

Ms Nichols has slammed the Labour Party's handling of sexual misconduct allegations (Image: Newsquest)

After further questioning on the Radio 4 programme, Ms Nichols said that her party's response to allegations against a Labour frontbencher had been 'utterly inadequate' - the Met Police announced it dropped the allegations earlier this year, which the service said was 'at the victim's request.'

Responding to Ms Nichols' criticism, the Labour Party said: "[We] would strongly urge anyone with a complaint to come forward so that allegations can be swiftly and fully investigated and action taken.

"The party has ensured that there is a wide range of support available to complainants, to provide confidence and confidential guidance throughout the disciplinary process."

This is not the first time the Labour MP has spoken out about sexual misconduct in politics (Image: Parliament TV)

Earlier this year, Ms Nichols highlighted sexual misconduct that had taken place in Westminster, explaining that she was told about a number of individuals who were known for their inappropriate behaviour.

She explained that these were 'people [she] was told to do everything [she] could to make sure that [she] wasn't alone with, to never accept a drink from, to not get in a lift with.'

At the time, she added: "People that their bad behaviour is so widely known, and so little action has been taken about this, that really it's left to individuals to try to keep themselves safe as far as possible by staying out of the orbit of these people."

The Warrington North MP concluded: "When we can't even keep our own house in order, it is really upsetting both on a personal and political level, because we can and should be better."