The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards has launched an investigation into MP Andrew Gwynne, the MP sacked as a minister and suspended from the Labour Party earlier this month after the emergence of offensive messages in a WhatsApp group.
Mr Gwynne, who is now sitting as the Independent MP for Gorton and Denton, is listed among the allegations under investigation by the commissioner, specifically for “actions causing significant damage to the reputation of the House as a whole, or of its Members generally” according to the Parliament website.
The investigation was opened on February 18 2025, the entry states.
Former health minister Mr Gwynne apologised for “badly misjudged” remarks he made in the group, when he left the Government and was suspended from the party.
Greater Manchester Police said that a “non-crime hate incident” had been recorded after the emergence of the comments.
Mr Gwynne reportedly said that he hoped a 72-year-old woman would soon die after she asked a councillor about bin collections, and joked about a constituent being “mown down” by a truck.
The Prime Minister dismissed Mr Gwynne as a minister as soon as he became aware of the comments.
Sir Keir Starmer “will not hesitate to take action” when ministers do not uphold high standards, Downing Street said at the time.
Labour MP Oliver Ryan also lost the Labour whip over his membership of the WhatsApp group.
Nearly a dozen Labour councillors in Tameside and Stockport have been suspended from the party as part of its investigation into the group, named “Trigger Me Timbers”. The group of 11 is understood to include Mr Gwynne’s wife Allison Gwynne.
Ashley Dalton, the MP for West Lancashire, was appointed as a minister at the Department of Health and Social Care following on from Mr Gwynne’s departure.
