MPS ‘aghast’ at cash made by colleagues
NEWLY elected Tory MPS are “aghast at the amounts of money that their colleagues are making”, as the sleaze row threatens to erupt into a civil war in the Conservative Party.
The scandal, which first exploded with the botched handling of Owen Paterson, led to the Tories plummeting in the polls. One survey puts them six points behind Labour.
But the party’s own MPS are also alarmed, with one suggesting there should be time limits for serving in the Commons and outside interests being listed on ballot papers.
The scandal has exposed a generational gap in the party, with the 2019 intake surprised at the old guard’s attitudes.
In the latest blow, Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross has reported himself to Westminster’s ethics watchdog for failing to declare earnings while serving as an MP.
Mr Ross apologised for failing to fully record his salary as a member of Scottish Parliament and his earnings as a football assistant referee.
He has accepted just one salary since being returned to Holyrood, with cash going to several charities.
Along with Labour’s six-point lead over its rivals, pollsters Savanta Comres found that two thirds of people think Boris Johnson should apologise over the Paterson scandal.
The Government-backed attempt to delay Mr Paterson’s suspension from the Commons for breaking lobbying rules – and replace the system for scrutinising MPS’ behaviour – has put the spotlight on the jobs MPS have taken to top up their salaries of £81,932.
A first-term Conservative MP said: “It’s a source of frustration that we have newer MPS who take their role very seriously and are very connected with their electorate, and another class of MPS who are arrogant and complacent.”
Another MP, who in 2019 won a Labour-held seat for the Conservatives, said there is a “clear generational gap” and that most of the 2019 intake would be happy for new rules to stop MPS working as private sector consultants. They said: “If you are doing the job properly, being an MP [takes up] the vast majority of your time.”
Lee Anderson, who took the red wall seat of Ashfield from Labour in 2019, suggested that when people stand for election the ballot paper should list “all the occupations they’ve got and outside interests”, as the public has “a right to know”. He also suggested that the number of years a person can serve could be capped to ensure “fresh blood” enters the Commons. Questions about sleaze will be back in the spotlight this week. On Wednesday, Mr Johnson will be quizzed on “propriety and ethics in Government” when he appears before the crossparty liaison committee, whose members include Chris Bryant, chairman of the standards committee.
The Savanta Comres polling found nearly two thirds of people thought former attorney general Geoffrey Cox should resign in the wake of reports he earned almost £900,000 in the past year as a barrister.
A Conservative insider said that many of the MPS who won seats in the north and Midlands have a “political outlook which is very different from traditional southern shire seats”. They said: “Some of those red wall MPS are aghast at the amounts their colleagues are making.”
Yesterday, bookie Boylesports cut the odds of Labour winning most seats at the next election from 7/2 to 7/4.Thetories remain favourites but their odds have drifted from 4/9 to 3/10.
The leader of the House of Commons, Jacob Rees-mogg, hinted at the row in his weekly Words of Wisdom for this newspaper.
He quoted philosopher David Hume, who said: “It is a just political maxim, that every man must be supposed a knave.”
Explaining the choice of quotation, Mr Reesmogg said: “There is nothing new in the expectation that people in public life are there for venal reasons. Whether it is true is more debatable.”