A fox broke into an MP's Westminster office and was caught hiding inside a stationary cupboard before being escorted out. The furry intruder made its way into Tory MP George Freeman's office at Portcullis House on Monday morning, but how it got there remains a mystery.
Discovery in the Cupboard
Mr Freeman, the MP for Mid Norfolk, said his parliamentary caseworker, James, heard strange noises coming from the office at around 9am. When he went to investigate, he found a "poor little creature staring at him," Mr Freeman told the Standard.
James later said he felt as though "something was watching him" before discovering the fox "peering out" from the stationary cupboard. The animal was "not at all alarmed" by being discovered, he added.
Pest Control Called
House authorities were alerted and a pest control team was dispatched to deal with the unexpected visitor. Even for the team tasked with removing unwanted guests from the parliamentary estate, the callout was an unusual one. One member described it as "a first."
The fox was given some water before being removed from the office and released in the Victoria Tower Gardens area.
MP's Reaction
Mr Freeman believes the animal may have "snuck in after one of the cleaners" but had no idea how long it had been inside. "It was quite a little fox and there are foxes all around London," he said. "They can get into all sorts of cracks."
Mr Freeman, the former Minister of State, Science, Technology and Innovation, said the intrusion was "not a security problem." He added that growing up on a farm meant he was "not at all" scared by the trespassing fox.
Foxes at Parliament
While a fox turning up to an MP's office is rare, the animals are no strangers to the Houses of Parliament. Foxes have previously been spotted roaming the grounds, often lurking around gardens and creeping underneath fences.
In October, a fox was spotted investigating members of the public near the entrance to Westminster Hall before it was shooed back into the streets by Parliamentary staff.
