June 2015
After graduating from the University of Nottingham, Elliott Johnson, 21, starts working for the Thatcherite pressure group Conservative Way Forward (CWF) in London as a political blogger.
12 August
Johnson is involved in an altercation with Mark Clarke, an election aide and unsuccessful Tory parliamentary candidate, in the Marquis of Granby pub in Westminster. It later emerges that Clarke was frustrated with Johnson for refusing to run a story on the CWF website.
August
Johnson makes a complaint to Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) about Clarke.
August
Johnson is made redundant from his role as political editor at CWF but is offered a part-time position as social media consultant.
2 September
Johnson meets Clarke and his associate Andre Walker. The pair aggressively attempt to persuade Johnson to withdraw his letter of complaint about Clarke. It later emerges that Johnson recorded their conversation.
5 September
Johnson contacts CCHQ and withdraws his complaint. Simon Mort, the senior CCHQ member dealing with the case, replies and insists Johnson meets with him.
7 September
Johnson meets Mort and reports back to Walker that everything was cleared up and he “significantly played down” what happened in the Marquis of Granby.
14 September
Johnson attends a meeting at Portcullis House to discuss the recent appointment of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader. He walks to the tube with Alexandra Paterson, the chair of youth movement Conservative Future, to whom he passes a letter.
15 September
Johnson is found dead on railway tracks near Sandy station, Bedfordshire.
16 September
Police searching Johnson’s room at his shared flat in south London find three letters, in which he identifies Mark Clarke and Andre Walker as bullying and betraying him.
22 September
The inquest into Johnson’s death opens. The Guardian reveals allegations of bullying have been made against Tory party members and supporters.
23 September
The Guardian reveals that Clarke was accused along with others of bullying Johnson in the letter Johnson left before his death. Clarke denies allegations of any wrongdoing.
9 October
Johnson’s funeral is held in Cambridgeshire.
18 November
The Conservatives announce that Clarke has been expelled from the party for life. It says it has no written record of complaint about Clarke’s behaviour before August.
27 November
The Guardian reveals that Lady Warsi wrote to the then party chairman, Grant Shapps, in January complaining about Clarke’s conduct, and reports that the parents of Johnson are calling for Shapps and the party chair, Lord Feldman, to resign. The Guardian also publishes a special report on Johnson and claims of a bullying culture in the party.
28 November
Shapps resigns his position as international development minister.
29 November
The party says Lord Feldman will give evidence as a witness in the investigation into allegations against Clarke, amid growing pressure on the Tory chairman to stand down over the scandal.
- In the UK, the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14. Hotlines in other countries can be found here.
