Arrest of Tory MP accused of rape should have been kept secret, says Nigel Evans

Allegations should not be made public until MPs are charged, says former deputy speaker

Nigel Evans, the former deputy speaker of the House of Commons, leaving Preston Crown Court (Getty Images)

A Conservative MP who was cleared of an incorrect rape allegation has criticised the decision to make public the arrest of one of his colleagues for the same alleged crime.

Nigel Evans, the former deputy speaker, raised concerns about the parliamentary procedure for disclosing when an elected representative is arrested.

He said information about alleged crimes committed by MPs should not be released when they were arrested, but rather when and if they were charged with an offence.

Mark Prichard, MP for the Wreckin, was arrested and bailed following an allegations of rape earlier this week.

“I know what he is going through and no one should rush to judgment. In too many cases, the allegations have led to absolutely nothing,” Mr Evans told the Daily Telegraph newspaper . “Knowing Mark, he will give the police all the help he can.”

“I am surprised about how the information got into the public domain. I am little bemused as to why it appeared on the order paper like that. I don’t think this information should be released before charge.”

It is parliamentary procedure to report the arrest of an MP on the order paper under the “arrest of a member” section.

Mr Evans highlighted cases where high-profile people accused of crimes were not eventually charged with any offence.

“Paul Gambaccini, Jimmy Tarbuck, Jim Davidson, Ben Sullivan – the Oxford student – in all those cases there was no further action,” said Mr Evans. He added that the process of being publicly accused was “horrific”.

In May 2013 Mr Evans was accused of rape, a charge of he was later cleared of. He stepped down as deputy speaker at the time. Mr Pritchard had criticised the Crown Prosecution Service's decision to prosecute the Deputy Speaker after he was cleared.