UKIP general secretary suspended following candidate's sexual harassment claim

UKIP general secretary Roger Bird defended himself saying that his relationship with high profile candidate Natasha Bolter was consensual.

16:00 09 December 2014

UKIP general secretary Roger Bird has been suspended following allegations that he sexually harassed high profile candidate Natasha Bolter.

In an interview, Bolter, an Oxford-educated former Labour party activist, said that Mr Bird invited her to a London member’s club for an interview. "I thought it was because I was nervous. [But] when I went I could see that he wasn’t really interested in what I had to offer as a politician.”

"He took me down to the snooker room and said 'I find you very attractive'. He said, 'Would you like to come home with me?’"

She went on saying Mr Bird "leant over and tried to kiss me". "It was obvious that he wanted to sleep with me. I was quite adamant that I’m not going to sleep with him or anyone [in Ukip]. It’s hard enough for women. We shouldn’t have to sleep with people to get to the right place."

On Monday, UKIP confirmed that it had suspended Mr Bird “following allegations of impropriety with regards to candidate selection.”

Meanwhile, Mr Bird denied the allegations and claimed that his relationship with Bolter was consensual. He told the BBC: "We were in a relationship briefly, but that relationship developed well after she had been admitted to the approved candidates list, so her selection was not connected to that."