Boris Johnson defends deputy amid claims of fraud and sex abuse

The Mayor announced that he would hold an independent inquiry into allegations of fraud and sexual misconduct against his deputy Ray Lewis.

He claimed the allegations, which stem from Mr Lewis's time as a Church of England clergyman, were a politically motivated attempt to 'bring down' a decent man.

The Mayor called a press conference to denounce claims of financial irregularity — believed to involve a borrowed sum of £29,000 — and sexual harassment against Mr Lewis.

His office dismissed any suggestion that the deputy mayor, who appeared alongside his boss at City Hall, would be asked to stand down.

Mr Lewis told the press conference: "I'm not a saint but I'm also not the person painted by these allegations. I have never harassed anyone, I have never defrauded anyone, I've not done anything that is inconsistent with my role as director of a charity or becoming a JP, or as someone who has the awesome responsibility of caring for young people."

He said: "Working with Boris Johnson's administration has been the greatest honour of my life. I would not allow that office or Boris's trust in me to be tainted in any way. I hope to draw a line under this issue so that I can get on with improving the lives of young people. These allegations are malicious, people are intentionally trying to smear me."

He dismissed the claims of sexual misconduct as 'totally unfounded and complete rubbish'. He also denied knowing he had been suspended by the Church of England in 1995, however the church later confirmed that this had happened.

Chris Newlands, the chaplain to the Bishop of Chelmsford, said of Mr Lewis: "He was suspended as a minister in 1995. That is an historic fact. He was not actually working in England at that stage, but there were actions taken at that stage. He was working in the diocese of the Windward Islands in Grenada.

"The decision was taken by the Bishop of Barking and was under restrictions which meant that he would not be able to return to the Church of England. That was lifted in 2000."

Mr Johnson told the press conference: "I'm not going to prejudge the result of this investigation nor am I going to comment on the substance of these allegations. None of these allegations led to charges therefore I'm more than happy to leave the matter in the hands of the independent inquiry."

Mr Lewis, a married father of three grown-up daughters, was ordained at St Paul's Cathedral in 1990 at the age of 24.

He was one of a very small number of black clergy ordained in the Church of England. He was curate at St Mary Magdalene, Islington, before becoming vicar of St Matthew's, West Ham, where he oversaw a growing multicultural congregation. He became a prison governor in 2000 before setting up the Eastside Young Leaders Academy in Newham two years later.

Mr Johnson met Mr Lewis on the election trail and was impressed by his devotion to improving the lives of disadvantaged boys. The Mayor asked him to take on the role of deputy mayor for young people and opportunities.

A spokesman for Mr Johnson said: "We believe that somebody with a political axe to grind is trying to destroy a good man."

The Mayor has already lost one key aide, political strategist James McGrath, who was forced to quit two weeks ago after he said people from the Caribbean could 'go home' if they did not like London.