Lib Dem MP Cameron Thomas arrested on suspicion of assault

A Liberal Democrat MP suspended by the party has been arrested on suspicion of controlling and coercive behaviour and assault, the Guardian understands.Cameron Thomas, the MP for Tewkesbury, was arrested by Gloucestershire police on Wednesday. The Liberal Democrats said the 43-year-old had had the whip and membership of the party suspended.In a statement released on Friday, Gloucestershire police said: “On Wednesday [17 June], a man in his 40s from Tewkesbury was arrested on suspicion of controlling and coercive behaviour and assault.“The man was interviewed by officers before later being released on police bail. Enquiries into the allegations made against him are ongoing.”Thomas became the member of parliament for Tewkesbury in 2024, winning the seat from the Conservatives with a majority of more than 6,000 and had previously served as a military police officer.Shortly after 6pm on Wednesday, a post appeared on Thomas’s Facebook page showing him posing in the House of Commons in an England football shirt carrying the slogan “Extra Time for Dads”, a call for extended paternity leave. However, he appeared to still be in Gloucestershire to watch England’s opening World Cup game on Wednesday.Thomas, who lives in his constituency, attended a fair in the village of Bishop’s Cleeve, near Cheltenham, last weekend. He chatted to local people and a Lib Dem councillor.Thomas spent 23 years in the RAF, working in telecommunications and information technology, before a tour as a drill instructor inspired him to commission as a military police officer. He served in Iraq, the Falkland Islands and the US.Since the election, Thomas has frequently spoken on defence and foreign policy issues, lobbying the UK government for closer collaboration with Nato and EU partners and for the rebuilding of the UK defence-industrial base.A Liberal Democrat spokesperson said: “Cameron Thomas MP has had the party whip suspended pending the outcome of a police investigation. We are unable to comment further while the police investigation is ongoing.”His membership of the party has also been suspended pending the outcome of the police investigation.