Tag: News Story

STORY

The Guardian Newspaper has alleged that Michelle Mone was involved with PPE Medpro despite her firm denials that she wasn’t, including using a solicitor to threaten the newspaper. Mone, who took leave from the House of Lords in December 2022 following a series of serious allegations about her personal conduct, has refused to comment on the latest allegations from the Guardian.

The Guardian reported on her and her husband Douglas Barrowman:

“A representative of Barrowman told the Guardian that the Isle of Man-based businessman was an investor in PPE Medpro, and chaired and led the operation to supply personal protective equipment. The admissions raise questions about years of denials from the couple. Until now, Mone and Barrowman have consistently and emphatically denied to the Guardian, via lawyers, that they were involved in the company.”

The Guardian was previously told by Mone’s solicitors that any allegation that Mone was involved with PPE Medpro was “inaccurate, misleading and defamatory”. Mone has refused to comment on the latest allegations, as the Government continues with a £122 million claim against the company for providing inadequate products. The National Crime Agency is also continuing its investigations into PPE Medpro.

RESOURCES

House of Lords Commissioners Statement on the Personal Conduct of Michelle Mone

EXTERNAL NEWS LINKS

Guardian News Story

STORY

Lee Anderson, the Deputy Chair of the Conservative Party, has apologised and paid compensation over comments he made on Twitter on 6 October 2023. He had alleged that Dr Tom Dolphin had boasted of being paid a large sum of money for a strike cover shift. In a statement, Anderson said:

“On October 6 2023 I shared a link on X to a MailOnline article entitled ‘Militant union leader at the heart of doctors strikes is a Labour activist who boasted of charging the NHS for a strike cover shift’. I accept that my words were misleading as the subject in question, Dr Tom Dolphin, was not on strike on the date of the shift in question but was simply covering a shift as a consultant for junior doctors who were on strike on August 11 2023.

I would like to offer my sincerest apologies to Dr Dolphin for any distress, upset caused. I will also like to add that I understand that Dr Dolphin actually donated his pay for the covered shift which I believe was £1,870 to the BMA strike fund and, whilst I do not agree with the strikes, I want to go on the record to say that I think it is a very unselfish act on the part of Dr Dolphin to put his money into something he strongly believes in. I will make the same contribution to compensate the upset I may have caused Dr Dolphin. Please repost.”

Responding to Anderson’s statement, Dolphin stated:

“A very gracious apology, thank you Lee Anderson. Thanks also for the donation. I hope it inspires others to donate to the strike fund as well.”

The BMA issued a statement noting:

“Doctors have been repeatedly misrepresented by the Government during this industrial dispute so it is good that these false claims about Dr Thomas Dolphin have now been corrected.”

STORY

Paul Bristow, the Conservative MP for Peterborough, has been sacked from his role as a PPS following for his calls for an Israeli ceasefire. A spokesperson for Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, said that:

“Paul Bristow has been asked to leave his post in government following comments that were not consistent with the principles of collective responsibility.”

Bristow said that he understood the decision that had been taken by the Prime Minister and now felt that he was better able to engage with his constituents about the issue from the backbenches.

RESOURCES

Paul Bristow

STORY

The Government has announced that changes will be made to reduce the length of time that former offenders will need to declare their convictions to employers for. The measures are aimed to make it easier for 120,000 former offenders to find work and to reduce the barrier to employment which many face. The Ministry of Justice said in a statement:

“Under the previous rules, some offenders needed to disclose their sentences for the rest of their lives, even for crimes committed decades earlier, a significant barrier to them getting a job and rebuilding their lives. Now, custodial sentences of four years or more years for less serious crimes become ‘spent’ after a seven-year period of rehabilitation, as long as no further offence is committed.”

Alex Chalk, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, said in a statement:

“Carrying the weight of life-long criminal records even after serving their time is a huge barrier for many offenders seeking to reintegrate into society and turn away from a life of crime. These reforms will help ex-offenders get the steady income, routine and purpose they need which cuts reoffending and ensures fewer members of the public become victims of crime.”

RESOURCES

Government Press Release

STORY

MPs backed the recommendations of a report by the Parliament’s Independent Expert Panel which said that Peter Bone, the Conservative MP for Wellingborough, should be suspended from the House for a period of six weeks. The decision means that there will now likely be a by-election held in the constituency as a recall petition will be started which will trigger a fresh election if 10% of constituents sign it. Bone, aged 70, was first elected as a Conservative MP in 2005 and he has denied the allegations of sexual misconduct which have been made against him.

RESOURCES

Suspension Recommended for Peter Bone

Parliament’s Independent Expert Panel Report into the Behaviour of Peter Bone

STORY

King Charles III has confirmed the appointment of three Conservative MPs to the Privy Council. Downing Street issued a press release stating:

“The King has been pleased to approve that Steve Baker MP, Craig Williams MP and Sir Graham Brady MP be sworn of His Majesty’s most Honourable Privy Council.”

STORY

Labour have won the by-election in Tamworth, caused by the resignation of Conservative MP Christopher Pincher, in the second highest swing in the post-war period. Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, said that the result represented an “incredible night in politics” and that “it is clear the voters here have turned their back on a failed Tory government. They’ve had enough of the decline for the past 13 years”. The seat was won by Sarah Edwards, who is currently working in the NHS, with a majority of 1,316. Pincher had represented the constituency since 2010 but had resigned to a sexual abuse scandal.

RESOURCES

News Story – Labour win Mid Bedfordshire By-Election

Tamworth By-Election Result

STORY

Labour’s Alistair Strathern has won the Mid Bedfordshire by-election which was caused by the resignation of Nadine Dorries who had represented the constituency for the Conservatives since 2005. Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition, said on the result in the constituency and also in the by-election held in Tamworth:

“These are phenomenal results that show Labour is back in the service of working people and redrawing the political map. Winning in these Tory strongholds shows that people overwhelmingly want change and they’re ready to put their faith in our changed Labour party to deliver it. Voters across Mid Bedfordshire, Tamworth and Britain want a Labour government determined to deliver for working people, with a proper plan to rebuild our country. To those who have given us their trust, and those considering doing so, Labour will spend every day acting in your interests and focused on your priorities. Labour will give Britain its future back.”

Alistair Strathern, the new MP, was educated at Oxford University and became a teacher before starting employment at the Bank of England. Following his victory, Strathern said:

“I’m just so, so overwhelmed and grateful for the faith that people have placed in me today. People right across our towns and villages were turning their backs on the government and an MP that had not shown sufficient respect over the last few years and we were incredibly heartened by the strong positive reaction we were getting right up until today.”

RESOURCES

By-Election Result

STORY

Sir John Armitt, the Government’s Big Projects adviser, has warned that Rishi Sunak’s plan to sell off HS2 assets to prevent a future Government restarting the project would be a “mistake”. Sunak, who scrapped the major rail infra-structure project to pursue a more pro-road strategy in the overall transport plan, had intended for land acquired for the second phase of HS2 to be sold off immediately.

Sir John said:

“I think it’s a mistake. I think that the land should be kept for at least two or three years to give the opportunity for people to revisit that and look at what can be done within that space and find a more cost-effective solution, not write it off today I am disappointed because I think it’s what we often describe as a sort of knee-jerk, snap reaction.”

He added:

“We had an integrated plan a few weeks ago, we’ve now lost that. There are a number of projects, some of which already existed, some new ones. Let’s get those properly turned into a well-thought-through, integrated plan for the future”.

STORY

The Independent Expert Panel (IEP) has recommended that Conservative MP Peter Bone be suspended from the House of Commons for six weeks over allegations of bullying and sexual misconduct against a Parliamentary staff member. The IEP found that Mr Bone had committed “many varied acts of bullying and one act of sexual misconduct” against a member of his staff between 2012 and 2013. The press notice issued by the IEP stated:

“This is a serious case of misconduct. The bullying involved violence, shouting and swearing, mocking, belittling and humiliating behaviour, and ostracism. This wilful pattern of bullying also included an unwanted incident of sexual misconduct, when the complainant was trapped in a room with the respondent in a hotel in Madrid. This was a deliberate and conscious abuse of power using a sexual mechanism: indecent exposure.”

Bone has strongly denied the allegations made against him, but the IEP found that the complainant’s evidence was “credible and reliable”. Given the severity of the allegations made against Bone, the suspension is serious enough to trigger the Recall of MPs Act 2015. This means that if 10% or more of the electorate in Bone’s constituency sign a recall petition within the defined six weeks period then his seat will be declared vacant and a by-election will be held.

The IEP’s report found that Bone had subjected the complainant to a “prolonged campaign of bullying and intimidation”. It also found that he had exposed himself to the complainant on one occasion, adding that Bone’s behaviour had “a devastating impact” on the complainant. Bone said that he was “deeply disappointed” with the report and said that he would be appealing the suspension.

RESOURCES

Peter Bone

Findings of the IEP

EXTERNAL LINKS

IEP