BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg has opened up about a series of uncomfortable encounters with government ministers, including an incident in which she arrived for an arranged hotel meeting and found a politician lying on a bed alongside his wife.
Kuenssberg said the incident occurred during a party conference. She had expected to meet the minister and his adviser but was surprised to find the politician and his wife together in the hotel room.
Asked whether she thought the couple had anticipated a threesome, the journalist said she could not establish what their intentions were.
“Well, maybe they were and maybe they weren’t. As I say, maybe they weren’t and I got it completely wrong. It was very uncomfortable,” she said.
The incident is detailed in her first book, Pay Attention, although she did not disclose the minister’s identity.
Kuenssberg also recounted a separate encounter with another married government minister, whom she had arranged to meet for coffee to discuss work-related matters.
According to her account, the minister instead invited her to the theatre and suggested “a little grope”.
She further revealed that some politicians had greeted her with kisses on the forehead, while others sent messages making comments about her clothing. She said certain interactions eventually prompted her to cut off communication with those involved.
Speaking to The Times, Kuenssberg acknowledged that inappropriate behaviour sometimes occurred in political circles, highlighting concerns about the vulnerability of young people starting their careers in Westminster.
“People do things. And human behaviour is a complicated thing, and sometimes people behave badly,” she said.
“There is still a concern in Westminster that particularly young people starting out are sometimes very vulnerable.”
Kuenssberg, 50, served as the BBC’s political editor from 2015 to 2022, becoming the first woman to occupy the position. She began presenting Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg in 2022.
