This is topical: will Parliament vote to exclude MPs who have been arrested for sexual crimes?
The reason it’s topical is Natalie Elphicke’s defection to the Labour Party, only yesterday at the time of writing (May 8, 2024). Her ex-husband Charlie [see featured image] was convicted of sexual offences against women and she went on the record to defend him.
MPs are due to vote on Monday, on plans to exclude MPs from Parliament if they have been accused of crimes – but there is division over the point at which they should be excluded.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Currently, Parliamentary authorities have no power to ban MPs who are accused of sexual wrongdoing.
Original plans were for Parliament to be able to exclude MPs at any point in a criminal investigation, such as on arrest – but Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt has watered-down these proposals, saying they would only be banned if they had been charged by police.
This runs against the findings of the House of Commons Commission, which carried out a consultation on the plans and called for exclusions to happen at any time after an arrest, after concerns were raised about the length of time that could elapse between arrest and charge.
Mordaunt says her reason for rolling back the plans is that MPs are concerned about the detrimental effect that having no voice in Parliament would have on communities.
This Writer is not convinced by that argument. Who wants to have someone accused of sexual offences speaking for them in Parliament?
Also, the civil service union Prospect has condemned Mordaunt’s revision as a “massively retrograde step” that will “dismay all staff at Westminster”.
Reading between the lines, it suggests that civil servants who work for our MPs are worried that Mordaunt is offering offenders an extended opportunity to prey on them.
What do sex offender MPs do, though?
Let’s go back to Charlie Elphicke. While some MPs voluntarily recuse themselves from Parliament when accused, he did not.
No, he had to be suspended after he tried to influence a judge presiding over his trial, along with other Conservative MPs.
So you can see that there is evidence to suggest that accused MPs will compound their offences – one way or another.
And now Parliament is split – not along party lines but over the issue. Some MPs support Mordaunt; others are trying to reverse her decision.
Liberal Democrat Wendy Chamberlain expresses their argument very well: “It’s about safeguarding… The public expects that, where possible, MPs are aligned with what happens in other workplaces. If a school teacher had been arrested on suspicion of rape, they would be suspended, and I believe it should be the same for MPs.”
One aspect of this controversy that This Writer finds heartening is that the vote will not be whipped, meaning MPs will be able to vote according to their conscience. We should all pay attention to what our own MPs do; it should inform our decisions at the general election.
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Will Parliament vote to exclude MPs who have been arrested for crimes?
This is topical: will Parliament vote to exclude MPs who have been arrested for sexual crimes?
The reason it’s topical is Natalie Elphicke’s defection to the Labour Party, only yesterday at the time of writing (May 8, 2024). Her ex-husband Charlie [see featured image] was convicted of sexual offences against women and she went on the record to defend him.
MPs are due to vote on Monday, on plans to exclude MPs from Parliament if they have been accused of crimes – but there is division over the point at which they should be excluded.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Currently, Parliamentary authorities have no power to ban MPs who are accused of sexual wrongdoing.
Original plans were for Parliament to be able to exclude MPs at any point in a criminal investigation, such as on arrest – but Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt has watered-down these proposals, saying they would only be banned if they had been charged by police.
This runs against the findings of the House of Commons Commission, which carried out a consultation on the plans and called for exclusions to happen at any time after an arrest, after concerns were raised about the length of time that could elapse between arrest and charge.
Mordaunt says her reason for rolling back the plans is that MPs are concerned about the detrimental effect that having no voice in Parliament would have on communities.
This Writer is not convinced by that argument. Who wants to have someone accused of sexual offences speaking for them in Parliament?
Also, the civil service union Prospect has condemned Mordaunt’s revision as a “massively retrograde step” that will “dismay all staff at Westminster”.
Reading between the lines, it suggests that civil servants who work for our MPs are worried that Mordaunt is offering offenders an extended opportunity to prey on them.
What do sex offender MPs do, though?
Let’s go back to Charlie Elphicke. While some MPs voluntarily recuse themselves from Parliament when accused, he did not.
No, he had to be suspended after he tried to influence a judge presiding over his trial, along with other Conservative MPs.
So you can see that there is evidence to suggest that accused MPs will compound their offences – one way or another.
And now Parliament is split – not along party lines but over the issue. Some MPs support Mordaunt; others are trying to reverse her decision.
Liberal Democrat Wendy Chamberlain expresses their argument very well: “It’s about safeguarding… The public expects that, where possible, MPs are aligned with what happens in other workplaces. If a school teacher had been arrested on suspicion of rape, they would be suspended, and I believe it should be the same for MPs.”
One aspect of this controversy that This Writer finds heartening is that the vote will not be whipped, meaning MPs will be able to vote according to their conscience. We should all pay attention to what our own MPs do; it should inform our decisions at the general election.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (in the right margin). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Join the uPopulus group at https://upopulus.com/groups/vox-political/
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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