UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted that he made a poor decision by appointing Chris Pincher even after he was made aware of a complaint of sexual misconduct against the MP. 

According to a report by BBC, Johnson confessed that he was told about the complaint in 2019 but he did not act on it and therefore, made a “bad mistake.”

The PM’s statement on Tuesday was followed by the resignations of two senior cabinet ministers, Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid.

Last week, Pincher resigned from the Conservative Party after he “drank far too much” and allegedly groped two men in a private club.

Johnson’s response to the row over Pincher’s appointment has been heavily criticized by Tory MPs and opposition parties until now.

The PM said that he was “fed up with people saying things on my behalf” and wanted to clear the air once and for all. 

He told BBC that he was “aware back in 2019, of a specific allegation against Pincher that was resolved.”

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However, he added that appointing Pincher as the deputy chief whip this year “was the wrong thing to do.”

“There is no place for anyone in this government who abuses power,” Johnson said.

“I bitterly regret the decision not to… intervene,” he said, while not denying that he jokingly referred to the MP as “Pincher by name Pincher by nature.”

Meanwhile, former civil servant Simon McDonald said that No 10 was lying when it stated that the PM was not aware of the complaint against Pincher.

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McDonald said Johnson was “briefed in person” about an inquiry into the complaint.

On the other hand, minister Michael Ellis said that Johnson “did not immediately recall the conversation in late 2019 about this incident.”

“As soon as he was reminded, the No 10 press office corrected their public lines,” Ellis said on Tuesday.