ADVERTISEMENT

Tory MP Paterson Quits Amid Backlash Over Lobbying Breach

Boris Johnson Scraps Plan to Rip Up Sleaze Rules After Uproar

Owen Paterson, a member of Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party found guilty of breaking rules on paid lobbying, resigned from Parliament after the premier was forced to reverse an attempt to block his punishment.

Facing a backlash including from members of his own ruling Tories, Johnson on Thursday scrapped his plan to rip up U.K. Parliament rules on politicians’ behavior. That left Paterson facing a 30-day suspension and potentially a fresh election to retain his parliamentary seat.

Johnson’s climbdown followed a slew of negative front pages, including in Conservative-leaning newspapers, criticizing his decision to try to overhaul Parliament rules rather than accept the suspension of Paterson, a former Tory minister, who was found guilty of paid advocacy on behalf of two companies.

“The last few days have been intolerable for us,” Paterson said in a statement. “My children have therefore asked me to leave politics altogether, for my sake as well as theirs.”

It’s a damaging moment for Johnson, who expended considerable political capital to defend Paterson, but who now sees his plan unravel less than 24 hours later. His position divided Tory MPs, 13 of whom voted against the government on Wednesday and many more abstained.

Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg confirmed the U-turn in Parliament, telling MPs it is clear Johnson’s plan could not proceed without the cooperation of opposition parties, who boycotted the move. Ministers will look at other ways to “achieve improvements” to rules on standards, he said.

Johnson’s spokesman Max Blain told reporters a further vote on Parliamentary standards would take place in due course. 

Office Targeted

Johnson’s government initially defended its position early on Thursday, but as Tory MPs revealed the anger among voters in their districts -- Peter Bone said his local offices were ransacked -- it rapidly became clear it was untenable.

Paterson’s suspension was recommended after an investigation by Parliament’s standards commissioner Kathryn Stone, who found he approached ministers and officials on behalf of Randox and Lynn’s Country Foods.

Paterson says the probe was flawed because it allowed him no right to appeal or call witnesses in his defense. Members of Parliament’s standards committee have denied that was the case.

Past Probes

Johnson’s decision to get involved was especially controversial because of his own history with Stone, who said he broke the rules over a luxury holiday to Mustique. The standards committee, made up of MPs and lay members, later overruled that finding.

But the episode has reignited allegations of sleaze against the Conservative Party, British media shorthand for questionable actions ranging from corruption or secretive financial arrangements to sex scandals, just as the prime minister tries to get his government back on track after the pandemic.

It also put ministers in a difficult position as they defended the government’s actions, only for Johnson to back down.

Opposition politicians yelled “shame” at the government benches as Wednesday’s vote result was read out. Labour and the Scottish National Party said they would boycott the new standards committee, leaving the government little choice but to abandon the plan.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.