The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that Rupert Lowe, the MP for Great Yarmouth, will not be facing criminal charges in connection with an allegation of threats. Lowe, who was elected as a Reform UK MP during last year’s general election, was suspended by the party in March following claims of threats directed towards the party’s chairman, Zia Yusuf. Malcolm McHaffie, the head of the CPS, stated that the decision not to pursue charges was made after a comprehensive review of the evidence, noting that there was insufficient evidence to secure a conviction.
In response to the announcement, Lowe released a statement accusing Reform of orchestrating a “brutal smear campaign” against him and claiming that the Metropolitan Police had dropped their investigation into what he referred to as “false allegations”. He criticized his former party’s leader, Nigel Farage, branding him as “a coward and a viper”. Following these events, Lowe now serves as an independent MP, having distanced himself from Reform UK.
The incident in question, which took place at the Palace of Westminster in December 2024, did not specifically name Lowe in the CPS statement. Mr. McHaffie emphasized that the role of the Crown Prosecution Service is to conduct fair and objective assessments to determine whether charges should be pursued, and in this case, the legal test for criminal prosecution had not been met. The decision is also subject to the Victim’s Right to Review (VRR) scheme, allowing victims or their families to request a review of certain CPS decisions regarding prosecution.
Reform had reported Lowe to the police in early March, citing allegations of physical violence threats made towards Yusuf. Additionally, the party had initiated an investigation into claims of workplace bullying within Lowe’s office, particularly involving two female employees. Despite denying any wrongdoing and attributing the allegations to retaliation following his criticism of Farage, Lowe was found by lawyer Jacqueline Perry KC to have mistreated the female team members in a manner consistent with harassment, failing to address similar behavior from his male colleagues. Consequently, Lowe was expelled from Reform UK, with one of the women lodging a formal complaint with the Parliamentary Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme
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