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‘Off with you’! British PM, Theresa May sacks deputy Damian Green, found to have lied he said there was no porn on his Parliamentary computer

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British Prime Minister, Theresa May, sacks best mate First Secretary of State, Damian Green, after his caught in a lie concerning his past extra-curricular activities
Recently released report finds he lied when he said there was no porn on his Parliamentary computer, nine years ago
Damian Green tonight resigned as Theresa May’s deputy PM after a sleaze probe
Ex Police officer Bob Quick said he found porn on Mr Green’s computer in 2008, finally got his man
MP who has been friends with the prime minister since their college days denies viewing material but accepts denials porn was found is misleading
Green was Mrs May’s oldest friend in politics and closest Westminster ally is the third Cabinet member to quit in 6 weeks after Michael Fallon and Priti Patel
Mr Quick arrested Mr Green, then a shadow immigration minister, and held him for nine hours while his constituency office and home was searched.
The episode sparked a huge inquest at the Commons into whether parliamentary privilege should have protected the material held by an MP.
And just a year later Mr Quick quit as a policeman after being photographed heading into the {rime Minister’s residence at No 10 Downing Street, with a security briefing about an undercover operation.
But after a decade of bad blood between the two men, that contentiuos office raid has finally ended Green’s Cabinet career.
Damian Green and his his wife Alicia Greene 1.pngGuilty or not guilty of abusing govt property?  Green, seen with his wife Alicia [right], claims ‘the allegations’ against him have been deeply hurtful to him and his family
Former Met Police assistant commissioner Bob Quick claimed he found vast quantities of porn of Damian Green’s office computers when he raided his parliamentary office in 2008, investigating a different set of allegations.

Separate allegations Mr Green behaved inappropriately towards Tory activist Kate Maltby turned out unfounded, but his actions over the porn claims were considered a breach of the ministerial code.
It makes him the third cabinet minister to quit from Mrs May’s top team in just six weeks after ex defence chief Sir Michael Fallon and former international development secretary Priti Patel quit amid scandals.
Mr Quick claimed he found vast amounts of porn on Mr Green’s office computer during the police raid and took his allegation to the Government’s standards chiefs in early November at the height of the Westminster sleaze scandal.

Bob Quick 1
Former Police Asst. Comm. Bob Quick claimed he found vast quantities of porn on Damian Greene’s office computers when he raided his parliamentary office in 2008 

Green scrambled to deny the claims – insisting in a statement on November 4 that the ‘police have never suggested to me that improper material was found on my parliamentary computer’.
But while he continues to deny claims he viewed inappropriate material on his office computer, he has now admits police did talk to his lawyers about the allegations back in 2008 and again in 2013.
Damian Green and Bob Quick crossed swords in 2008 when the Met assistant commissioner took dramatic action in an inquiry into leaks from the force.
Mr Quick decided to arrest then then shadow immigration minister.
The Tory MP was held for nine hours while his Commons office, two homes and constituency office, were searched and computers removed by counter-terrorism officers.
The episode sparked a huge inquest at the Commons into whether parliamentary privilege should have protected the material held by an MP.
In the ensuing political storm, it emerged Mr Quick’s wife was running a car hire firm from their home and details of their address were published on a website.
The officer then accused the Tories of being ‘wholly corrupt’ in leaking the story to intimidate him and his investigation.

But he was forced to apologise after then party leader David Cameron said the claim ‘Tory machinery’ was mobilised against his investigation was ‘completely baseless’.
Mr Green was later cleared of any wrongdoing. Mr Quick complained bitterly that the investigation cost him his career.
He quit in April 2009 after being photographed arriving at Downing Street with documents detailing a counter-terror operation clearly visible. He later claimed he might have survived the gaffe if it had not been for the Green affair.

And it is this statement that has been his undoing and forced him to quit from Mrs May’s Cabinet.
In a statement, Mr Green said: ‘From the outset I have been clear that I did not download or view pornography on my Parliamentary computers.
‘I accept that I should have been clear in my press statement that police lawyers talked to my lawyers in 2008 about the pornography on the computers, and that the police raised it with me in in a subsequent phone call in 2013.
‘I apologise that my statements were misleading on this point.
‘The unfounded and deeply hurtful allegations that were being levelled at me were distressing to both me and my family and it is right that these are being investigated by the Metropolitan Police’s professional standards department.’
The departure of Mr Green, regarded as Mrs May’s closest ally in politics, will be a hammer blow to the PM as she was struggling to get her government back on track.
She had fought for weeks to try and find a way to save him, but eventually decided he must go.|
Mr Green’s letter pointedly stayed that he had been ‘asked’ to resign – indicating his desire had been to tough out the storm.
The 61-year-old wrote a resignation letter to Mrs May today and said that he and ‘should have been clear’ when giving statements about the incident.
He wrote: ‘I accept that I should have been clear in my press statement that police lawyers talked to my lawyers in 2008 about the pornography on the computers, and that the police raised it with me in a subsequent phone call in 2013.
‘I apologise that my statements were misleading on this point.’
Mrs May accepted his resignation and wrote: ‘I’m extremely sad to be writing this letter, we have been friends and colleagues throughout our whole political lives.

 

 Damian Green tonight was forced to quit as Theresa May’s deputy after he was found to have lied over claims porn was found n his computer nine years ago

Mr Green is the third cabinet minister to be forced to quit in just six weeks after their careers have been hit by scandal. Sir Michael Fallon and Priti Patel resigned as defence secretary and international development secretary respectively

Damian Greene 3Former First Secretary of State Green leaves London home amid porn allegations
Damian Green’s resignation letter

Dear Prime Minister,

I regret that I’ve been asked to resign from the government following breaches of the Ministerial Code, for which I apologize. It has been a privilege to serve in your government both as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and as First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office.
It was also a great pleasure to work with you in the Home Office both as Minister for Immigration and as Minister for Policing, Criminal Justice and Victims. Your years as Home Secretary were a model of reforming institutions in the interests of the wider public.
I share and support your vision of a country that works for everyone, using Conservative policies to help those who have for too long been disadvantaged. In particular I am pleased to have:: published the Race Disparity Audit and to have started the government on a road to a reformed social care system.
From the outset I have been clear that I did not download or view pornography on my Parliamentary computers. I accept that I should have been clear in my press statements that police lawyers talked to my lawyers in 2008 about the pornography on the computers, and that the police raised it with me in a subsequent phone call in 2013.
I apologize that my statements were misleading on this point. The unfounded and deeply hurtful allegations that were being leveled at me were distressing both to me and my family and it is right that these are being investigated by the Metropolitan Police’s professional standards department.
I am grateful that the Cabinet Secretary has concluded that my conduct as a minister has generally been both professional and proper. I deeply regret the distress caused to Kate Maltby following her article about me and the reaction to it. I do not recognise the events she described in her article, but I clearly made her feel uncomfortable and for this I apologize.
Finally I would like to give heartfelt thanks to my Parliamentary colleagues and my Ashford constituents for the huge support they have shown me in recent weeks. I will continue to argue for the modernizing conservatism I have always believed in.

Yours,

Damian

Damian Green wrote this letter resigning from his public office position in Theresa May’s govt

Dear Damian,

I am extremely sad to be writing this letter. We have been friends and colleagues throughout our whole political lives – from our early days at university, entering the House of Commons at the same election, and serving alongside each other both in Opposition and in Government. As Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, and as First Secretary of State, you have brought great wisdom, good sense, and a commitment to helping the most vulnerable to my Cabinets in this Parliament and the last. I have greatly appreciated your hard work and the contribution you have made to my team, just as I did at the Home Office, where you served as Immigration Minister and Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, helping to drive through important but often difficult reforms.
Like you, I know the vast majority of our police to be diligent and honorable public servants, working hard to protect the public and maintain law and order. But I shared the concerns raised from across the political spectrum when your Parliamentary office was raided in 2008 when you were a Shadow Home Office Minister holding the then Labor Government to account. And I share the concerns, raised once again from across the political spectrum, at the comments made by a former officer involved in that case in recent weeks. I am glad that the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has condemned that, made clear that police officers’ duty of confidentiality endures after they leave the force, and that the Metropolitan Police’s professional standards department are reviewing the comments which have been made.
When allegations were raised about your personal conduct, I asked the Cabinet Secretary to establish as far as possible the facts of the case and provide advice on whether or not there had been a breach of the Ministerial Code. He has produced a thorough report which concludes that your conduct as a minister has generally been both professional and proper.
You have expressed your regret for the distress caused to Ms Maltby following her article about you and the reaction to it. I appreciate that you do not recognize the events Ms Maltby described in the article, but you do recognize that you made her feel uncomfortable and it is right that you have apologized.
I know that you share my determination to ensure that everyone who wants to play their part in our political life should feel able to do so – without fear or harassment, and knowing they can speak out if they need to. Equally, it is right that those who put themselves forward to serve the public should also be accorded the respect of a private life within the law.
I have also carefully considered the report’s conclusions in relation to two statements you made on 4 and 11 November which you now accept were inaccurate and misleading. This falls short of the Seven Principles of Public Life and is a breach of the Ministerial Code – a conclusion which has been endorsed by Sir Alex Allan, the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests. While I can understand the considerable distress caused to you by some of the allegations which have been made in recent weeks, I know that you share my commitment to maintaining the high standards which the public demands of Ministers of the Crown.
It is therefore with deep regret, and enduring gratitude for the contribution you have made over many years, that I asked you to resign from the Government and have accepted your resignation.

Yours ever

Theresa

PM Theresa May’s response to her First Secretary of State, Damian Green, her closest ally in politics

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