MP pleads not guilty to sexual assault charges

An MP has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault alleged to have taken place at London's Groucho Club.

Central Suffolk and North Ipswich MP Patrick Spencer is accused of two assaults on two women on the same day in August 2023 - before he was elected.

The 37-year-old, who became a Conservative MP at the 2024 general election, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

He is due to appear next at Southwark Crown Court on 14 July for a plea and trial preparation hearing.

Mr Spencer stood in the dock to confirm his name as Michael Patrick Spencer and his date of birth.

District Judge Paul Goldspring told the MP, whose address was given in court as Suffolk, he was on unconditional bail.

The charges were first brought against Mr Spencer in May.

Frank Ferguson, head of the special crime and counter terrorism division at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), previously said: "Following a review of the evidence provided by the Metropolitan Police Service, we have authorised two counts of sexual assault against Patrick Spencer MP.

"The charges follow two alleged incidents involving two separate women at the Groucho Club in central London in August 2023."

The Groucho is a private members' club in Soho's Dean Street. It opened in 1985 and became a well-known haunt of celebrities and media figures.