If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again to rewrite anti-sleaze rules until your financial interests are protected.
That, at least, still appears to be the aim of a Filthy Fifty-odd group of MPs, despite last week’s calamitous Commons scenes.
Although admitting that ‘mistakes’ had been made, one of them, Old Etonian Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, said he wants to ‘move on and decide how we can alter’ the system that governs lobbying.
If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again to rewrite anti-sleaze rules until your financial interests are protected. That, at least, still appears to be the aim of a Filthy Fifty-odd group of MPs, despite last week’s calamitous Commons scenes. Owen Paterson can be seen above
That’s the system introduced after the ‘mistakes’ of cash-for-questions, the expenses scandal and myriad lobbying revelations that resulted from undercover stings or resolute press reporting, as in the current exposé of Owen Paterson.
Political leaders tend to forget the fact that it was investigative journalism that led to anti-sleaze laws, and not parliamentary self regulation, as a large number of Tory MPs wish to see them diluted.
In 2018, 79 MPs shamefully voted to give themselves anonymity during watchdog investigations into alleged expenses breaches and corruption – to help keep the press from telling the public about those inquiries. Consequently, all details of MPs being probed were deleted from Parliament’s website within hours, even egregious cases (again exposed by a newspaper) such as Keith ‘don’t forget the poppers’ Vaz.
Last year Parliament came to terms with the anonymity privilege and reversed it despite efforts by Sir Charles Walker and David Davis, Tory greats. Now, 52 Tories voted against MP anonymity 3 years ago. Davis and Sir Charles were also involved in trying to save Paterson.
Sir Bob Neill was the ex-Planning Minister, who was found guilty by the standards commissioner last year of violating Commons rules by lobbying on official paper for planning applications weighing in excess of multimillions of pounds submitted by clients to a consulting firm whose payroll he was. Then, he used the anonymity rule to cover his inability to answer any questions.
According to me, champagne is flowing so freely in The Spectator’s offices that accountants were asked to calculate the tax liability of giving away countless bottles Pol Roger.
A sign of the chronic indiscipline within the Conservative Party can be seen in a leaked message from a Tory MP to the Whips Office following last week’s screeching U-turn.
It read: ‘Please don’t ever ask me to vote for anything ever again. As you can see, I voted under protest yesterday for an item to support the party during a difficult situation. To then discover that the party has overturned the decision making me look stupid.
‘That will never happen again. To say I am livid would be the world’s biggest understatement.’
What mad parliamentarian put principle over party? It’s Philip Davies, MP for Shipley in Yorkshire, where ‘fools’ are not suffered gladly.
Trencher Truss is the best biscuit
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has an appetite for fine dining that dwarfs the mundane lunch habits of her predecessor, Dominic ‘same Pret sandwich every day’ Raab.
New disclosures of ministerial expenses by the Trade Department show Trencher Truss, left, charged taxpayers £1,308 for a dinner at 5 Hertford Street, the Mayfair private members’ club.
Katherine Tai, US trade rep was invited to the June jolly. Officials insist it was a ‘diplomatic working dinner’, but there was no mention of it in the department’s public account of Tai’s visit.
Apparently the meal was organised at short notice at the £2,850-a-year club and the venue chosen according to availability.
Presumably the other dinners Truss has hosted in 5 Hertford Street to woo Tory MPs were also held there because Nando’s was fully booked.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has an appetite for fine dining that dwarfs the mundane lunch habits of her predecessor, Dominic ‘same Pret sandwich every day’ Raab