AN ONLINE petition has been started calling for an inquiry into claims of a cover-up over the alleged conduct of a former Chester MP.

Calls for an investigation by a member of campaign group 38 Degrees follows allegations of a sexual nature against the late Sir Peter Morrison, who was Tory MP for Chester from 1974 until 1992, when the seat was taken over by Gyles Brandreth.

The petitioner expresses concern at a recent letter published in Simon Hoggart’s Guardian column from Grahame Nicholls, who ran Chester Trades Council.

Mr Nicholls wrote: “After the 1987 General Election, around 1990, I attended a meeting of Chester Labour Party where we were informed by the agent, Christine Russell, that Peter Morrison would not be standing in 1992.

“He had been caught in the toilets at Crewe station with a 15-year-old boy. A deal was struck between Labour, the local Tories, the local press and the police that if he stood down at the next election the matter would go no further. Chester finished up with Gyles Brandreth and Morrison walked away scot-free. I thought you might be interested.”

The online petition, to Chris Grayling MP, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, states: “We owe it to the people of Chester not to cover anything more up and expose the truth in this matter.”

Former Labour MP Ms Russell described the item as ‘shoddy journalism’ and said she had asked for a correction. She recalled that at the time there were rumours about Sir Peter’s preference for young boys but no hint of him acting illegally.

And she said there were claims of hypocrisy aimed at Sir Peter because he supported a Tory Government which had brought in Clause 28, regarded as a homophobic piece of legislation.

She said: “I might have said there was not going to be a by-election but there was certainly no local conspiracy to protect Morrison, it would not have been in our interests.”

Ms Russell did not rule out a national agreement that Sir Peter should stand down but she had no knowledge or evidence.