Former Midland MP Derek Conway today faced the prospect of a second parliamentary inquiry into his use of taxpayers’ cash to pay salaries to his sons while they were at university.
Mr Conway apologised to the Commons yesterday after watchdog MPs found that he had overpaid by thousands of pounds his youngest son, Freddie, who had been employed by him as a part-time researcher.
And today Labour MP John Mann said he would be reporting the former Shrewsbury & Atcham MP to the parliamentary commissioner for standards over £32,000 in payments from his staff allowance to his elder son, Henry.
Mr Conway’s friends accused MPs and the media of conducting a witchhunt, but the latest developments led to demands for David Cameron to discipline the Old Bexley and Sidcup MP.
Mr Mann said: “The facts will need to be ascertained by proper investigation. But if he has been doing the same thing with the first son then there is a significant sum of money that needs to be paid back to the taxpayer.
“It also puts the pressure on David Cameron to say today what he is going to do about Mr Conway. Should he be a candidate at the next election?”
Tory MP Roger Gale defended his fellow Kent MP and stressed that MPs were perfectly entitled to employ family members under parliamentary rules.
He said he had been assured by Mr Conway that his son, Freddie, had done the work he had been paid for, and he believed him as “an honourable man”.
“My understanding is still that, even in this day and age, in court a person is still considered innocent until proven guilty,” said Mr Gale.
Mr Conway already faces a 10-day suspension from the Commons, having his pay docked and having to pay back up to £14,000 of his staffing allowance given in salary and bonuses to Freddie, who is now 22.
A second probe into payments made to Henry, 25, would further damage his reputation.
Despite Peter Hain’s resignation over undeclared payments to his campaign for Labour’s deputy leadership, and the personal data scandals which hit the Government, the Tory popularity lead has narrowed.
A ComRes survey for The Independent gives the Conservatives an eight-point lead, down from 11 per cent last month.
It puts the Tories on 38 per cent, Labour unchanged on 30, and the Liberal Democrats under new leader Nick Clegg up one on 17 per cent.
By John Hipwood
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5 Comments
makes you wonder who hasnt got their nose in the trough who will you vote for
Another MP with his big snout in the trough. Not satisfied with the amount they get from the hard working tax payer for the non work they do!
Lets hope this will open up other investigation into MPs “expenses”.
personally I will vote for the pig with the smallest snout, and that would be hard to find amongst these greedy hypocritical Bozos
To Phil & Dudley bloke,
The politicians are already ducking and diving, don’t expect the Electoral Commission or any of the so called Commons investigators to look into this matter.
Look at your own MPs expenses, one MP claimed thousands for stamps for the letters he sent out, it has been claimed the money he claimed meant he had to send out 450 letters per day to account for it.
We have just faxed to the Editor of Sky News 15 documents to confirm fraud and corruption that costs every body, also emailed Mr. Hipwood of the Express and Star copies of emails to our local MP. We wait with interest to see who does what.
Get snouts out the trough party
Each and every MP in West Minster should have their accounts opened for investigation. For too long we the British people have been taken for mugs.