Tories Block Fellow MP's 'Sleaze' Suspension for Paid Lobbying
15:44 GMT 03.11.2021 (Updated: 15:24 GMT 28.05.2023)
© REUTERS / HANNAH MCKAY / FILE PHOTO: Owen Paterson is pictured outside the Cabinet Office in London
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Conservative MP Owen Paterson insists the question he asked on behalf of two companies who paid him as a consultant was in the public interest, and claims the probe into his conduct led to his wife's suicide.
Britain's governing Conservatives have ignited controversy after they voted to re-jig parliamentary misconduct rules after one of their MPs was found guilty of lobbying.
Parliament voted on approving a 30-day suspension of Owen Paterson, Conservative MP for North Shropshire in Wales, recommended by Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Kathryn Stone for allegedly breaching rules against paid advocacy.
The suspension would have allowed for a recall petition to be organised against Paterson, which could force a by-election if successful.
But the government benches pushed through an amendment to cancel his punishment by a narrow margin of 250 votes to 232, to cries of "shame" from the opposition benches. A total of 35 Conservative MPs abstained and 13 defied the whip to vote against it.
I did not support the Gov't today; but abstained.
— Bob Seely MP (@IoWBobSeely) November 3, 2021
I was going to vote with, but after listening to the Father of the House @PBottomleyMP & @RhonddaBryant, I changed my mind.
We need to respect the current system until we have put in place a better one.https://t.co/sPVtevQGYb
At least 59 Tory MPs had earlier put their names down to back the amendment tabled by Dame Andrea Leadsom, which also establishes a new select committee of nine backbench MPs to rule on misconduct cases, replacing the current panel of seven independent lay members.
The committee would have five Conservative, three Labour, and one Scottish National Party (SNP) MP, in line with the current proportions of Parliament, with Tory MP John Whittingdale as chair with the casting vote in case of deadlock.
Number 10 confirms that the government is seeking cross-party support on a new appeals process ahead of this afternoon's vote on the Leadsom amendment
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) November 3, 2021
'This isn't about one case but providing MPs from all parties with the right to a fair hearing'
But the SNP declared during the debate it would boycott the committee, and Labour reportedly later followed suit.
The amendment would also give MPs accused of wrongdoing the right to to a representative, to examine witnesses, and to appeal decisions in line with principles of "natural justice".
The Leadsom amendment, which could overturn suspension of Owen Paterson for lobbying, *will* be selected
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) November 3, 2021
Clerks have decided that it is within scope. Lindsay Hoyle expected to select it
Tory MPs are being informally whipped to support it - but some are refusing to do so
Paterson came under investigation more than two years earlier, in September 2019, on the basis of a story in liberal newspaper The Guardian about his paid consultancies for companies Randox Laboratories and Lynn’s Country Foods — which he declared on the register of members' interests.
Paterson was accused of asking a parliamentary question on behalf of his clients on the contamination of milk and ham with chemicals that cause cancer or contribute to antimicrobial resistance.
The MP claimed in a statement last week that Stone ignored written submissions from 18 witnesses in his favour and admitted she had made her mind up in the case before even reading them. He asked for his parliamentary privilege to be withdrawn to allow him to challenge the ruling in court.
Paterson has also said the probe contributed to the suicide of his wife Rose last year. The couple had been together for 40 years.
"The suicide of his wife was a far harsher punishment" than Parliament could impose, Leader of the House Jacob Rees-Mogg said as he led off the debate on the amendment.
He argued that Paterson should have been protected by exceptions made for whistle-blowers.
"There must be tough and robust checks against lobbying for profit", Rees-Mogg said. "There must be a proper process to scrutinise, and if necessary discipline, those who do not follow the rules".
But he said concerns raised by fellow MPs over the case were "now too numerous to ignore".
Labour Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy called the amendment "the most appalling double standards in a hundred years".
Leaders Clash
Prime Minister Boris Johnson was forced to defend the amendments at PM's Questions at noon, when he faced off against Labour Party deputy leader Angela Rayner
Rayner said "There should be agreement on all sides of the house" that Paterson's lobbying was a serious offence.
"In no other country could someone be found guilty by an independent body just for their mates to vote them back in", she said.
Johnson insisted it was a matter of "natural justice" that those accused should have the "right of appeal". He added that the suicide of Paterson's wife should be taken into consideration in the sprit of "moderation and compassion".
Rayner compared the scandal to the recent cases of crimes committed by police, saying "It's one rule for us and one rule for them".
"When they break the rules they just remake the rules", she said, accusing Johnson of imitating his "hero" Donald Trump by "cheating" the people.
Parliamentary Sleaze
Paterson is just the latest MP to be censured this year.
Rees-Mogg recently led efforts to close off a procedural loophole that allowed another Welsh Tory, Delyn MP Rob Roberts, to escape a recall petition after he was suspended for sexual harassment of two members of staff because the Independent Expert Panel (IEP) that recommended the sanction was not specified in the legislation that predated its formation.
But the opposition criticised that amendment for not being applied retrospectively, allowing Roberts, who won his seat in 2019 by less than 1,000 votes, to escape again.
Paterson, by contrast, has held his seat since 1997 and has a majority of almost 23,000.
Labour MP for Leicester East Claudia Webbe also faces suspension if she is given a jail sentence after being convicted last month of harassing a woman she accused of having an affair with her boyfriend. Webbe threatened to send nude photos and videos of the woman to her family and to throw acid on her.
