Tory MP Jamie Wallis today denied four traffic offences after appearing in court.
The 37-year-old pleaded not guilty to failing to stop, failing to report a road traffic collision, driving without due care and attention and leaving a vehicle in a dangerous position at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court.
Wallis, from Cowbridge, South Wales, was arrested on suspicion of ‘driving whilst unfit’ following a late-night crash when a car hit a lamppost in Llanblethian on November 28.
At the time, Wallis, the representative for Bridgend, said he was ‘assisting police with their inquiries’.
In a highly public statement released in March, Wallis revealed he had been raped and blackmailed, and was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
He also said he wants to transition to be a woman.In court today, Wallis, dressed in a blue suit and striped tie, denied all four charges.
Prosecutor Mike Williams told the court the Mercedes car was found with ‘electrical wires in disarray’ and the airbag deployed.
Mr Williams said: ‘The Mercedes has collided with a lamppost and also a wall.’
In his powerful public statement, Wallis wrote he had been targeted by a blackmailer who threatened to out him to the public unless he paid £50,000.
The MP said the offender was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison after admitting his guilt.
He also disclosed he was raped by a man he ‘hooked up’ with after meeting online, saying after the experience he ‘felt very ashamed and empty inside’, and suffered nightmares and flashbacks as a result.He was praised by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other MPs after posting the message online shortly before 3am on March 30, following a gathering for Tory MPs at which Mr Johnson reportedly made a joke about trans issues.
In an interview with Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Wallis gave advice to young people struggling with their gender identity.
He said he ‘wouldn’t wait as long as I’ve waited’, but there was ‘nothing wrong with just taking some time and discovering yourself’.
‘When you know who you are, you are ready and you want to tell the world, there are people like myself who are waiting and we’re welcoming, we’re friendly and we’re here to help and support,’ he added.
Wallis, who was smiling at the judge, was told the hearing would take place without him if he failed to attendWallis won his seat in December 2019, managing to oust Labour’s Madeleine Moon, who had held the constituency for 14 years.
The following month there were calls in the House of Commons from opposition MPs for him to apologise after company records showed he had held a business interest in a so-called ‘sugar daddy’ website called Sugar-Daddy.net which was branded ‘exploitative and demeaning’.
In February this year, Wallis was fined £270 and received three points on his licence at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court after admitting the offence of crossing a solid white line while driving a Mercedes on the A48 in August 2021.
A trial date for the current charges before District Judge Tan Ikram has been set for July 11.
Wallis, who was smiling at the judge, was told the hearing would take place without him if he failed to attend.