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{{For|the David Cameron epithet|Greased piglet}}{{short description|British political scandal}}
{{David Cameron sidebar}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2015}}
{{Multiple image
[[File:David cameron announces resignation (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|David Cameron]]▼
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"'''Piggate'''" refers to a claim that, during his university years, former [[British Prime Minister]] [[David Cameron]] inserted his penis and/or testicles into a dead pig's mouth as part of an [[hazing|initiation ceremony]] for the [[Piers Gaveston Society]] at [[Oxford University]].▼
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| footer = David Cameron and an example of a pig (right)
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▲"'''Piggate'''" refers to a claim that, during his
The anecdote was reported by [[Michael Ashcroft]] and [[Isabel Oakeshott]] in their [[unauthorised biography]] of Cameron, ''[[Call Me Dave]]'', attributing the story to an anonymous Member of Parliament who was allegedly a contemporary of Cameron's at the University of Oxford. Extracts from the book were published in the ''[[Daily Mail]]'' on 20 September 2015, prior to its publication.
[[Downing Street]] sources responded by saying that Cameron, who was
[[File:Lord Ashcroft presents Zulu at the Policy Exchange-Crossbench Film Society cropped.JPG|thumb|upright|Michael Ashcroft]]
Ashcroft and Oakeshott failed to receive a response from the purported owner of a photograph of the alleged incident
In an interview, [[Jonathan Guinness, 3rd Baron Moyne#Personal life and family|Valentine Guinness]], one of the [[Piers Gaveston Society]] founders, said that as far as he knew, Cameron "may well have attended one of their parties" but was never a member.
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== Background ==
Ashcroft had long been a supporter of the British [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] and was its biggest donor, having donated around £10 million, before dropping his support for the party in 2013 due to conflicts with David Cameron, especially his refusal to give Ashcroft a senior role in government despite his donations.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lord Ashcroft's Cameron biography bears hallmarks of revenge job|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/21/lord-ashcrofts-cameron-biography-bears-hallmarks-of-revenge-job |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |location=London |access-date=22 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Stewart |first=Dan |date=September 21, 2015 |title=Why David Cameron's 'Pig-Gate' Scandal Isn't Going Away |url=
== Response ==
After being asked about the anecdote, Downing Street said that it would not "dignify" the claim with a response.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dathan |first1=Matt |last2=Dearden |first2=Lizzie |date=23 September 2015 |title=David Cameron says he 'will not dignify' claims he put his genitals in the mouth of a dead pig |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/george-osborne-refuses-to-comment-on-claims-that-david-cameron-put-his-genitals-in-a-dead-pigs-mouth-at-university-10510692.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/george-osborne-refuses-to-comment-on-claims-that-david-cameron-put-his-genitals-in-a-dead-pigs-mouth-at-university-10510692.html |archive-date=26 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |work=The Independent |language=en-GB |location=London |access-date=25 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/downing-street-stays-silent-over-claims-david-cameron-put-genitals-in-a-dead-pigs-mouth-while-at-oxford-university-10510500.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/downing-street-stays-silent-over-claims-david-cameron-put-genitals-in-a-dead-pigs-mouth-while-at-oxford-university-10510500.html |archive-date=26 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Downing Street stays silent over claims David Cameron put genitals in a dead pig's mouth while at Oxford University|work=The Independent|location=London|access-date=21 September 2015}}</ref> ''[[The Independent]]'' reported that Cameron had told friends the claim was "utter nonsense".<ref name="The Independent">{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dead-pig-allegations-are-utter-nonsense-david-cameron-tells-friends-10511399.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dead-pig-allegations-are-utter-nonsense-david-cameron-tells-friends-10511399.html |archive-date=26 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Dead pig allegations are 'utter nonsense,' David Cameron tells friends|work=The Independent|location=London|date=21 September 2015|access-date=25 September 2015
Cameron joked about the situation during a talk in Oxford later that week, stating "I've had an interesting week. It's a week in which thousands of trees have died in vain, sales of [[Supertramp]] albums have gone through the roof and one man's reputation lies in ruins. I don't think Michael Ashcroft will ever recover."<ref name="BBC News">{{cite news |title=David Cameron jokes about Lord Ashcroft's book |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-34363685 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB |date=25 September 2015 |access-date=25 September 2015}}</ref> Six days after the story broke, Cameron responded to a question about the issue saying: "Everyone can see why the book was written and everyone can see straight through it. As for the specific issue raised, a very specific denial was made a week ago and I've nothing to add to that."<ref name="guardian27">{{cite news |last=Mason |first=Rowena |date=27 September 2015 |title=David Cameron publicly denies Lord Ashcroft pig allegation for first time |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/27/david-cameron-denies-lord-ashcroft-allegations-call-me-dave-dead-pig |work=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=28 September 2015}}</ref> At the time of the statement, Downing Street had made no on-the-record denial of the anecdote.<ref name="guardian27"/> Cameron also stated that he was deferring taking action at the present time to sue Ashcroft over the allegations because he was "too busy running the country".<ref>{{cite news |last=Farrell |first=Jason |date=28 September 2015 |title=PM Says He's 'Too Busy' To Sue Lord Ashcroft |url=https://news.sky.com/story/pm-says-hes-too-busy-to-sue-lord-ashcroft-10344929 |work=Sky News |language=en-GB |access-date=19 November 2022}}</ref>
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== Reactions ==
Within minutes of the ''Daily Mail'' posting an article about the anecdote, #piggate, #snoutrage and #hameron<ref name="guardian1">{{cite web |last=Grierson |first=Jamie |date=21 September 2015 |title=From #piggate to #Hameron: how Twitter reacted to David Cameron claims |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/sep/21/piggate-hameron-twitter-react-david-cameron-pig-head-claims |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |location=London |access-date=23 September 2015}}</ref> became [[Twitter trends|trending topic]]s on Twitter.<ref name="guardian1"/> The "Piggate" name was quickly accepted by the media reporting on it.<ref>{{cite web |last=Fahey |first=Rob |date=21 September 2015 |title=What #PigGate Really Says About the State of British Politics |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/09/21/what-piggate-really-says-about-the-state-of-british-politics/ |work=Foreign Policy |access-date=23 September 2015}}</ref>
After the anecdote appeared, social media users quickly made connections to "[[The National Anthem (Black Mirror)|The National Anthem]]", the premiere episode of ''[[Black Mirror]]'', wherein a fictional prime minister
[[Suzanne Moore]] in ''[[The Guardian]]'' compared the incident to the story related by [[Hunter S. Thompson]] on [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]'s campaign tactics early in his political career. Johnson supposedly planned to spread a fabricated story that his opponent had a penchant for "[[carnal knowledge]] of his own barnyard sows". Although the story was unbelievable, Johnson's purpose, according to Thompson, was to force his opponent to discuss it even in a refutation: "But let's make the sonofabitch ''deny'' it."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moore |first=Suzanne |author-link=Suzanne Moore |date=21 September 2015 |title=The David Cameron #piggate storm is a sideshow from the real issues. It's certainly effective |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/sep/21/david-cameron-piggate-sideshow-dead-pig |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |access-date=21 September 2015}}</ref>
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In November 2015, solicitor [[Myles Jackman]] said that performing a sexual act with a dead animal would not be illegal under the [[Sexual Offences Act 2003]]. He noted that possessing a photograph of such an act would be illegal under the [[Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008]] if it was produced for pornographic purposes, but not if the purpose was "satire, political commentary or simple grossness".<ref name=Jackman>{{cite news |last1=Jackman |first1=Myles |author-link=Myles Jackman |date=21 September 2015 |title=Is it illegal to have sex with a dead pig? Here's what the law says about the allegations surrounding David Cameron's biography |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/is-it-illegal-to-have-sex-with-a-dead-pig-heres-what-the-law-says-about-the-allegations-surrounding-10510743.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230123023727/https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/is-it-illegal-to-have-sex-with-a-dead-pig-heres-what-the-law-says-about-the-allegations-surrounding-10510743.html |archive-date=23 January 2023 |url-access=subscription |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |language=en-GB |access-date=23 January 2023}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
== References ==
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[[Category:Hashtags]]
[[Category:Hazing]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Zoophilia in culture]]
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