Five probes may be held on Osborne editor’s job

GEORGE Osborne was last night facing the prospect of up to five separate inquiries into his controversial decision to become editor of the London Evening Standard while remaining an MP.

The former chancellor has sparked a ferocious backlash at Westminster after accepting what will be his sixth job, prompting concerns about how he represents his constituents in Tatton, Cheshire, while editing a newspaper 200 miles away.

Remain campaigners yesterday welcomed his appointment to a role, which ministers fear he will use as a platform to undermine Brexit and attack Theresa May.

But his decision sparked a fresh debate about whether MPs should be allowed to take big outside jobs.

Lord Bew, chairman of the committee on standards in public life, said he was ‘uncomfortable’ with the appointment, and said his committee would discuss this week whether to launch a new probe.

‘We are going to discuss whether our rules on second jobs need to be changed in the light of this,’ he said. ‘We had something that, to a degree, worked. It now seems to be getting into rockier waters.’

Sir Kevin Barron, chairman of the Commons privileges committee, is drawing up proposals for a ban on MPs taking outside jobs during hours when parliament is sitting, which would make Mr Osborne’s new job impossible.

The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, which is meant to police the jobs of ex-ministers, is also considering whether to place restrictions on Mr Osborne.

And both the Cabinet Office and the Commissioner for Parliamen-

tary Standards are facing calls to investigate whether he has broken the codes of conduct required of ministers and MPs.

There is also concern that he could exploit privileged access to information as a Conservative MP and privy counsellor, which is not available to most journalists.Tory MP Andrew Bridgen said: ‘To be the editor of a popular newspaper and a Conservative MP with access to everything that goes on in the party is a clear conflict of interest.’

Mr Osborne has said he will not step down from his £75,000-a-year job as MP for Tatton, in Cheshire. But he was already facing criticism for lining his pockets since his leaving the Government last summer.

He is contracted to work one day a week at the American financial giant Blackrock, for which he is paid £650,000 a year. Since his sacking, he has also pocketed £786,450 from 14 speeches.

And he has accepted a £120,212-ayear position as the first Kissinger Fellow at the Washington DC-based McCain Institute for International leadership. He also holds an unpaid post as chairman of the Northern Powerhouse partnership.

But Tony Blair, who has launched a new campaign to overturn the result of last year’s EU referendum, welcomed Mr Osborne’s appointment, telling the BBC’s Andrew Marr show that his new role would ‘make politics more interesting’.

Former education secretary Nicky Morgan, another diehard Remain campaigner, told ITV’s Peston on Sunday programme that Mr Osborne would provide a ‘liberal voice’ to counter Mrs May’s approach.

Evening Standard proprietor Evgeny Lebedev also made it clear that Mr Osborne will not shy away from attacking the Government. In a message on Twitter, the Russian-born billionaire said: ‘Frankly, George Osborne will provide more effective opposition to the Government than the current Labour Party.’

‘A clear conflict of interest’