Arrested Tory MP rejects rape and assault claims

A senior British Conservative Party politician arrested on suspicion of rape and sexual assault said yesterday that the allegations against him are “completely false”.

Deputy House of Commons speaker Nigel Evans, 55, was arrested on Saturday. He was questioned about sex offences that allegedly took place between Jul 2009 and Mar 2013 and was later released on bail.

Evans — who has served in parliament for two decades and is one of Britain’s most prominent gay lawmakers — said the allegations were made by “two people well known to each other” and who until a day earlier he had regarded as friends.