Ex-Tory MP Scott Benton to appeal proposed suspension over lobbying scandal
Former Conservative MP Scott Benton has said he will appeal his recommended suspension from the House of Commons and intends to make a formal complaint over it.
The Blackpool MP was suspended from the parliamentary Tory party in April after being caught in an undercover sting by The Times suggesting he would be willing to break lobbying rules for money.
Following an investigation into the matter, the Committee on Standards recommended a 35-day suspension from the House of Commons, paving the way for a potential by-election, saying he committed a “very serious breach” of the rules.
Responding for the first time to the Standards report, Mr Benton said: “I will today be submitting a formal complaint to the House Authorities, as well as appealing the decision of the committee in due course.”
In his statement, Mr Benton claimed that the report’s findings had been leaked to journalists the night before it was published.
He said while he was “sworn to secrecy” and told he could only read the judgement an hour before it would be made public on Thursday morning, the committee “did not adhere to its own standards and principles”.
He said: “The night before the report was published, people on the Committee on Standards leaked contents of the report to a journalist and I was contacted on the evening before publication repeatedly by members of the press. This was not the first such leak whilst the investigation was taking place.
“This process is designed to be open, fair, honest and transparent so the public and MPs can have trust in the process.”
“This trust has been breached by Members of the Committee. I can’t have faith in a standards process that doesn’t adhere to its own ethics, standards and principles.
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