Labour MP and brother charged over ‘speeding lies’
A LABOUR whip and ally of Jeremy Corbyn has been charged with perverting the course of justice over allegations that she tried to pass on speeding points a month after her election.
Fiona Onasanya, the Labour MP for Peterborough, appeared at Westminster magistrates’ court two weeks ago alongside her brother, Festus.
The 34-year-old solicitor kept news of her arrest and charge secret while serving as a Labour whip. She is due back in court next month.
If she serves a jail term, she will be subject to the Recall Act of 2015, which means that as few as 10 per cent of her constituents can trigger a special vote to force her to stand down as an MP, forcing a by-election.
Her seat is one of the most marginal in the country. She won it in the 2017 snap election after defeating Stew- art Jackson, a former Tory MP, by 607 votes.
The charges drew comparisons with the case of Chris Huhne, the former Liberal Democrat cabinet minister, who was jailed alongside his ex-wife Vicky Pryce for perverting the course of justice when she took speeding points on his behalf.
Ms Onasanya faces two counts of perverting the course of justice. She was accused of speeding by Cambridgeshire Police on July 24 last year, a month after she became an MP. She and her brother allegedly “falsely informed” the police that a “third party” was at the wheel.
Her brother was subsequently accused of speeding on Aug 23, and the pair were again accused of falsely informing the police that a third party was driving at the time.
Mr Onasanya faces three counts of perverting the court of justice, with an additional charge over allegations that he passed on points to a third party on June 17 last year.
Speaking after her election last year, Ms Onasanya said she wanted to become the “first black, female prime minister of this country”.
She has been a vocal supporter of Mr Corbyn and called on her fellow MPS to back him. She told the Peterborough Telegraph: “I think it’s very important to get behind your leader. A house divided against itself can’t stand.”
Ms Onasanya said on her website that she would not have described herself as political “until she was overheard discussing the London riots whilst talking with a friend in a pub”.
She said she was then “approached by someone who turned out to be the secretary for the Cambridge Labour Party” who asked her to “think about joining”.