Sarah Dines MP in the spotlight

As the MP for Derbyshire Dales moves out from the shadow of Boris Johnson how will she react to the pressure?

It will be revealing to see if Derbyshire Dales Tory MP, Sarah Dines, can withstand the scrutiny that her involvement in the Pincher affair and her promotion to justice minister has brought.

Her reported line of questioning of the victim of the alleged assault at the Carlton Club by the ex government whip, Chris Pincher, had already made her the subject of front page news. Not surprisingly many are questioning the appropriateness of seeking to establish the sexual orientation of a victim.

She was also right next to newly appointed Education minister Andrea Jenkyns when Ms Jenkyns decided to insult the crowd outside the gates to Downing Street with a rude gesture. Another unwanted media story for Ms Dines.

The news that she has now been appointed Under Secretary of State at the Home Office and Ministry of Justice has, according to reports in the Sunday papers, caused anger amongst some senior Conservatives with one quoted as saying it was an "absolutely disgraceful decision". It is noteworthy that Ms Dines omitted the 'surprised' part in her announcement on Twitter of her promotion, merely saying she was 'humbled'. It was of course no surprise since it had been suggested in an article in the 'i' in February that she has been promised a promotion in the next re-shuffle. It must have been rather a disappointment for her that it came after the PM's resignation.

Whilst no-one can doubt Ms Dines' loyalty to her previous boss (she was a Parliamentary Private Secretary to Boris Johnson) it is to be hoped that she will show some legal and intellectual rigour in her new post. It cannot be said that that these qualities have been a consistent feature of her parliamentary contributions to date.

Just telling people what they want to hear or parroting material from CCHQ is not what people need, even if it might be what we have come to expect.