Mark Spencer, the British minister who fired Muslim MP Nusrat Ghani, has been appointed leader of the Commons, raising questions over the Islamophobia investigation he faces.
Mr Spencer was moved into the high-profile role by Prime Minister Boris Johnson despite allegations he removed Ms Ghani from her ministerial role partly due to her Muslim faith and a continuing investigation into his behaviour.
The reshuffle was sparked by the “partygate” investigation into lockdown events that have given the perception that the government was willing to break the rules placed on the rest of the country.
Asked about criticism from MPs over Mr Spencer's move from chief whip to Commons leader on Tuesday, the prime minister’s official spokesman said conclusions should not be drawn pre-emptively.
“There is an investigation continuing to establish the facts of what happened. And that's being carried out in a process … in line with a due process,” he said.
“It's right that we need to allow that investigation to conclude without … pre-empting it or drawing conclusions while that work is continuing.”
In an accusation made last month, Ms Ghani said she was told by a government whip that her faith made colleagues “uncomfortable".
The MP for Wealden, East Sussex, said she was shocked when the issue of her faith was raised during a meeting in the whip's office after a mini-reshuffle in February 2020.
Mr Spencer confirmed he was the subject of the claims, but has denied making the alleged comments, saying the accusations were “completely false” and “defamatory".
Mr Johnson asked the Cabinet Office to “establish the facts” regarding Ms Ghani's claim.
