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Conor Burns sacked as minister after touching man’s thigh, witness say

Conor Burns has been sacked as Conservative Minister and suspended as a Tory MP after eyewitnesses saw him touch a young man’s thigh in a hotel bar, the BBC has been told.

An eyewitness said they saw him in the Hyatt Regency hotel bar in Birmingham in the early hours of Tuesday with the man during the party’s conference.

Mr Burns has denied any wrongdoing.

The BBC has not spoken to or heard from the person the ex-minister was seen with.

Downing Street has not commented further on the circumstances of the sacking.

The eyewitness claimed that the minister placed his hand on the young man’s thigh and that there were several onlookers.

They added that Mr Burns was told by a bystander at the time to stop what he was doing, although this is disputed by friends of the Bournemouth West MP.

A second source with knowledge of the disciplinary process corroborated this report and confirmed that this incident had resulted in his being fired and losing his whip.

The BBC understands that a third party – not the man seen with Mr Burns – raised this incident of party whips instilling discipline among MPs and that this complaint led to the suspension of his whip and his dismissal as international trade minister.

Someone with knowledge of the disciplinary process told the BBC that concerns were also raised about “inappropriate comments” made by Mr Burns that night.

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Allies of the MP claim he injured his ribs the weekend before the party conference and was treated with powerful drugs to ease the pain.

They suggested that the prescribed drug made the alcohol’s effects worse.

It is not disputed by the former Minister’s friends that he had been drinking or flirting with the young man who had joined him, and of whom, as we have heard, Mr Burns was not acquainted.

The deputy was so drunk that he later had to be taken back to his hotel by a friend.

We understand Mr Burns strongly believes the flirting was consensual, but the BBC has not yet spoken to the man the former minister was dating to hear his account of the events.

An ally of the sacked minister told the BBC: “He feels trapped without there having been a police trial or a court hearing.”

The ally added that his career had been ruined because even if he had been exonerated and the whip restored, he would have lost his ministerial role.

The Prime Minister has not spoken to Mr Burns since his sacking.

Another suggested what happened, suggesting that a “moral police force” could now judge the behavior of others, regardless of what those involved made of it.

A source suggested that after a “diabolical conference” and a “terrible start” to her time as Prime Minister, Liz Truss was determined to use the incident as an example to demonstrate her authority over her party and government.

The source suggested that with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson “vacillating” over the case of Christopher Pincher, Ms Truss was determined to be seen as crucial regardless of due process.

A Conservative Party source said: “The Prime Minister has made it clear that the highest standards in public life must be upheld.”

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