A Suffolk MP accused of groping two women in a Soho members’ club was described as being “a bit of a pest” on the night of the alleged incident.
Patrick Spencer, the MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, is on trial at Southwark Crown Court in connection with alleged sexual assaults at the Groucho Club in August 2023.
He stands accused of grabbing the breasts of two women from behind during a night out at the London venue.
One of the alleged victims told the court she was “shocked” by the incident and described Mr Spencer as someone who had repeatedly tried to talk to her and buy her a drink.
She said she did not know who he was at the time.
The woman said: "As I was leaving the bar with my drink, he put his arms through my arms and touched my breasts.
"I carried on walking, I was shocked, I carried on walking, I wanted to get away."
She said Mr Spencer had been speaking to her at the bar and described him as “quite animated” and friendly at first.
However, she said her discomfort grew when he asked whether she was married.
She said: "He started talking to me, general chit chat, I can't remember how the conversation went, until he asked me: 'Are you married?’ which I thought was a bit personal.
"That's when I thought I need to move away."
She also said he insisted several times that she try a cocktail, despite her refusals.
She said: "I didn't want one.
"He was very insistent, even though I said: 'No,' a number of times.
"I felt I couldn't walk away until I had taken a sip of the drink."
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said the assault took place after she returned to the bar from the smoking area.
She told another woman about the incident but chose not to tell her husband at the time.
A second woman overheard her and said: "The same thing just happened to me."
During cross-examination, Spencer's barrister Eleanor Laws KC argued that CCTV footage showed the MP “barely touched” the woman.
The woman disagreed and said she had "pushed away from him" and believed he touched her "for a millisecond."
The court heard that Mr Spencer was confronted about his behaviour and asked to leave the Groucho Club that night.
He was identified as the man in the CCTV the following year.
Prosecutor Polly Dyer said on Monday that Spencer is accused of being “unsteady on his feet” and slurring his words when trying to talk to one of the women.
CCTV played in court showed him sitting with friends and walking around the bar area.
The recording shows him putting his arms around the woman and allegedly grabbing her breasts before she pushed his hands away.
Mr Spencer was elected as a Conservative MP in the 2024 general election but has since been suspended from the party and had the whip withdrawn following the charges.
In a police interview, he described his behaviour as “overfriendly” but denied any intention to touch the women inappropriately.
Mr Spencer denies both counts of sexual assault and any contact with the women’s breasts.
The trial continues.
