THE Tory grandee, who controversially blocked the bid to ban so-called “upskirting” south of the border, has defended his actions, claiming he has been misrepresented and misunderstood.
His response came after Theresa May appeared taken aback as to why she had allowed Sir Christopher Chope, who has sought to block a number of bills over the years, to receive a knighthood just a few months ago.
The MP for Christchurch in Dorset sparked outrage when, to cries of “shame” in the Commons, he single-handedly blocked the criminalisation of upskirting in England and Wales; it has been banned in Scotland since 2009.
After the outcry, Sir Christopher told his local newspaper he supported outlawing what he called was the "vulgar, humiliating and unacceptable" act of upskirting but stressed he had objected on a point of principle about Government misusing parliamentary procedure.
He shouted down Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse's Voyeurism Offences Bill, which would have made illegal what the Prime Minister branded an "invasive" and "degrading" act; she has pledged to revive an attempt to ban it.
The 71-year-old backbencher told the Daily Echo on Sunday: "I feel a bit sore about being scapegoated over this. The suggestion that I am some kind of pervert is a complete travesty of the truth. It's defamatory of my character and it's very depressing some of my colleagues have been perpetuating that in the past 48 hours."
Sir Christopher urged the Government to find the "fastest, fairest and surest passage" for a bill banning people from taking pictures up someone's clothing without their consent as he accused ministers of "hijacking" backbenchers' time with the Friday afternoon debate.
But Ms Hobhouse, the MP for Bath, demanded the Tory MP apologise, saying: “By objecting to the Bill, Christopher Chope let women in England and Wales down. I, therefore, expect him to make a full apology to all the woman who have been harassed and degraded by this vile practice.”
Earlier, Culture Minister Margot James said her Tory colleague had brought their party into disrepute while the Prime Minister expressed her "disappointment" at his move.
However, when Mrs May was asked why she had permitted the knighthood of Sir Christopher - who has attempted to block the pardon of the World War Two Enigma code-breaker Alan Turing and the proposed ban on using wild animals in circuses - she seemed taken aback.
The PM said: “Christopher Chope has been a long-standing Member of Parliament,” before adding what was important was not the individual but the Government’s clear intention to get upskirting banned.
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