Expenses cheat Tory’s career ‘may be in tatters’
MP who created fake invoices now faces losing seat, court told
A TORY MP who admitted expenses fraud was spared jail yesterday.
Christopher Davies, 51, created fake invoices to claim from taxpayers the £700 he spent on photographs to decorate his constituency office.
The offence carried a one-year jail sentence but the MP was instead fined £1,500 with £2,500 costs. He was also ordered to do 50 hours of community service.
He is the first MP to be convicted of providing false or misleading information for expenses claims under laws introduced in 2009.
Passing sentence at London’s Southwark Crown Court, Mr Justice Edis told Davies: ‘It seems shocking that when confronted with a simple accounting problem, you thought to forge documents.
‘That is an extraordinary thing for a man with your position and your background to do.’ The judge said the criminal conviction could end his political career because it triggers a recall petition.
Thomas Forster QC, defending Davies, said: ‘There is a very real likelihood that his political career is in tatters.’
Davies bought nine images for his office following the 2015 election at a cost of £700. Despite having a legitimate invoice, he fabricated two bills – one for £450 and one for £250 – so the cost could be split across two budgets.
One of the budgets was an office start-up fund that had only £475 left in it. The other was for ongoing office costs and had £8,000 remaining. The judge said the Brecon and Radnorshire MP may have created the fake invoices to use up all of his start-up budget or to conceal his spending on decorative items. One of the invoices said ‘furniture/pictures’ – when it was for photographs alone.
The court was told Davies was entitled to claim the £700 on either budget. He admitted a charge of providing false or misleading information for allowances claims contrary to section 10 of the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009.
He also pleaded guilty to attempting to provide false or misleading information for an allowance claim using an invoice ‘that he knew to be false or misleading’. Outside court Davies said: ‘I want to take this opportunity to make an unreserved apology. I would like to reiterate that I made a mistake, and at no point did I at any time try to make any financial gain.’
But Ian Lavery, chairman of the Labour Party, said: ‘MPs getting away with this kind of self-serving, dishonest behaviour turns people off politics. Theresa May has continued to rely on his vote for her botched Brexit deal, when she should have kicked him out.’
The bogus invoices were reported to the authorities by Sarah Lewis, Davies’ former office manager.
The 57-year-old mother of four, who is a local councillor, is pursuing him in an employment tribunal. She said: ‘Hopefully he will serve his community service in somewhere like a food bank.’
Under parliamentary rules, Davies does not automatically lose his seat because he did not get a prison sentence of 12 months or more.
But Commons Speaker John Bercow will ask officials to open a recall petition and a by- election will be held if 10 per cent of constituents sign it. Before entering politics, Davies worked as an auctioneer, estate agent and veterinary practice boss.