Home secretary James Cleverly apologises for 'ironic joke' about spiking wife's drink

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Home Secretary James Cleverly cracked a joke about spiking his wife's drink with a date rape drug in comments made at a Downing Street bash.

The unguarded remarks came just hours after his Home Office announced plans to crack down on spiking.Mr Cleverly told female guests at the reception that "a little bit of Rohypnol in her drink every night" was "not really illegal if it's only a little bit", the Sunday Mirror reported.Mr Cleverly also laughed that the secret to a long marriage was ensuring your spouse was "someone who is always mildly sedated so she can never realise there are better men out there".The Home Secretary met his wife Susie at university and the couple have two children.

Conversations at Downing Street receptions are usually understood to be "off the record" but the Sunday Mirror decided to break that convention because of Mr Cleverly's position and the subject matter.Allies of Mr Cleverly said his comments were made in a private setting but he recognises they were inappropriate.

Mr Cleverly has previously described tackling violence against women and girls as a "personal priority" and called spiking a "perverse" crime.A spokesman for the Home Secretary said: "In what was always understood as a private conversation, James, the Home Secretary, tackling spiking made what was clearly meant to be an ironic joke - for which he apologises."Senior Labour figures criticised Mr Cleverly's "appalling" comments.