Press release 03rd Nov 2021

Vote to block MP's suspension hugely damaging for trust in our democracy and rule of law

November 3, 2021 - Responding to a vote by MPs to overhaul rules on MPs' behaviour to prevent a senior Conservative from being suspended from the Commons, Daniel Bruce, Chief Executive of Transparency International UK, said:

“With this vote MPs have sent a clear signal that they believe there should be one set of rules for them, and another set for everyone else. Instead of punishing an MP for serious breaches of the rules, which were determined by a thorough and independent investigation, the party of government instead opted to simply scrap the rules. This is hugely damaging for trust in our democracy and the rule of law.

“This week, Parliament’s ethics watchdog made a series of significant recommendations to improve integrity and standards by our elected representatives. Just two days later, MPs have voted to do away with the system responsible for overseeing their behaviour as well as the rules stopping them from acting as paid lobbyists – which have existed in some form for more than 300 years. In order to limit the damage from this decision, the government should implement the recommendations proposed by the Committee on Standards in Public Life in full and without delay, as well as setting out a clear timeline for the process to reinstate oversight of MPs' behaviour.”