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| Grant Shapps quits amid Tory bullying claims | Grant Shapps quits amid Tory bullying claims |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Grant Shapps has quit as international development minister amid allegations of bullying in the Conservative Party, the BBC understands. | Grant Shapps has quit as international development minister amid allegations of bullying in the Conservative Party, the BBC understands. |
| Claims have engulfed the Tories following the apparent suicide in September of activist Elliot Johnson. | Claims have engulfed the Tories following the apparent suicide in September of activist Elliot Johnson. |
| Mr Johnson's father had called on Mr Shapps, a former party chairman, to resign over claims he ignored repeated warnings about the actions of party youth organiser Mark Clarke. | Mr Johnson's father had called on Mr Shapps, a former party chairman, to resign over claims he ignored repeated warnings about the actions of party youth organiser Mark Clarke. |
| Mr Clarke has denied any wrongdoing. | Mr Clarke has denied any wrongdoing. |
| The party has been subject to allegations of bullying, sexual assault and intimidation since Mr Johnson, 21, was found dead. | |
| Prime Minister David Cameron said it was a "tragic loss of a talented young life". | |
| Downing Street said the prime minister was awaiting the results of an internal investigation but Mr Johnson's father has called for an independent and external inquiry. | |
| Mr Clarke was in charge of a campaigning initiative called RoadTrip, which bussed young volunteers around the country. | |
| Earlier this month, he was banned for life from the Conservative Party. | |
| He says he strongly rejects all allegations of bullying, harassment, assault or attempted blackmail. | |
| "I believe that these false allegations and this media firestorm are related to the events surrounding Elliott's sad death," he said. | |
| "As such I will be co-operating with the coroner and providing him with the fullest information. This is the proper process. After the inquest I will look to take legal action for defamation in respect of these allegations." | |
| The Conservative Party has said that it received no written complaints until this summer about Mr Clarke's behaviour. | |
| However, former chairwoman Baroness Warsi says she wrote to Mr Shapps, her successor, in January asking for action to be taken against Mr Clarke. | |
| Mr Shapps was appointed international development minister following the Tory election victory in May. | |
| MP for Welwyn Hatfield since 2005, he was housing minister in the coalition government and two years later became co-chairman of the Conservative Party and a Cabinet Office minister. |