Boris Johnson to face questions on sleaze and violence against women as allegations ramp up
Boris Johnson is to face questioning by MPs about parliamentary standards as the row over sleaze continues.
The prime minister will appear in front of the liaison committee, comprised of the chairs of all Commons select committees, from 3pm today.
He will face questions on government standards, violence against women and girls, the COP26 summit and the budget and spending review.
Follow live updates from the liaison committee from 3pm today
The main focus is expected to be on standards after a series of scandals over the past few weeks, including Conservative MPs being whipped to review the standards system and reject a recommendation that Tory MP Owen Paterson be suspended for breaching lobbying rules.
Mr Johnson will also face questions from senior Conservative MP Caroline Nokes who told Sky News on Monday the PM’s father, Stanley Johnson, touched her inappropriately at a party conference in 2003.
The PM last appeared before the liaison committee, the only select committee that can call on the PM, in July.
At that appearance, he managed to dodge several questions, including whether he had sacked former health secretary Matt Hancock after he was caught disobeying lockdown rules while having an affair with an aide.
Senior Conservative MP Bernard Jenkin, chair of the committee, said the PM’s appearance in front of the committee three times a year is “becoming an increasingly significant event”.
He told Sky News: “It’s the one time where a cross-party group of MPs can question the prime minister on detail, and on a non-partisan basis.
“The feedback shows that the public is highly engaged with this kind of scrutiny, particularly when it is forward-looking and constructive.”
He added that his role is to make sure the PM answers the questions and said: “If they’re fair questions I press him to answer them.”
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Caroline Nokes makes allegations about Stanley Johnson
This is what is expected to be discussed in the committee:
Propriety and ethics in government
This section is expected to be the main focus, with Labour MP Chris Bryant, chair of the standards committee, set to quiz Mr Johnson.
He will be joined by Conservative MP William Wragg, chair of the public administration and constitutional affairs committee, who was one of 13 Tory rebels who voted in agreement of Mr Paterson’s suspension and against reforming the standards rules.
It will be the first time MPs can ask questions of the PM on his proposal to ban MPs from having second jobs as political consultants or lobbyists, which he announced on Tuesday afternoon.
The PM should expect some direct questioning from Mr Bryant, who has been scathing about the government’s handling of the Paterson affair and attempts to change the standards rules.
His committee found Mr Paterson had breached a number of lobbying rules, in what Mr Bryant called “a very fair hearing” and recommended he be suspended for 30 days.
Mr Paterson quit as the MP for North Shropshire following the U-turn on delaying his suspension.
Mr Bryant told Sky News the furore over standards had done “terrible, terrible reputational damage” to parliament and said there had been attempts to “lobby” and “bully” standards committee members over its ruling on Mr Paterson.
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PM did what ‘Viktor Orban would do’
And after Tory MP Christopher Chope was the sole person to object to rescinding the motion to review standards on Monday, Mr Bryant warned the Commons would “fall into further disrepute” if the motion was not brought forward “as soon as possible”.
Mr Wragg, part of the 2019 intake of MPs, said he disobeyed the three-line whip to vote against suspending Mr Paterson as a matter of conscience.
He said mixing up Mr Paterson’s case with a reform of standards was “moving the goalposts”.
Violence against women and girls
This is the first opportunity the liaison committee has had to question the PM on what the government is doing to tackle violence against women and girls since a series of murders of women that have shocked the public.
Sarah Everard was raped and killed by a serving police officer in March, Sabina Messa was killed as she walked to the pub in September and a teenager was jailed for life in October for murdering sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman.
Their murders have forced politicians to talk about women’s safety and police conduct and the liaison committee is set to push for real change.
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‘No recollection of Caroline Nokes’ – Stanley Johnson
Conservative MP Caroline Nokes, chair of the women and equalities committee, is one of four MPs who will be questioning the PM on violence against women and girls.
Downing Street has refused to address her allegation his father touched her inappropriately but will not be able to avoid her in the committee room.
Yvette Cooper, chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee, is also set to question the PM and it will be the first chance since her committee launched an inquiry into violence against women and girls.
As part of that inquiry, the committee is looking into how rape victims are treated by the police and courts so the PM will be expected to have answers.
COP26 summit
Less than a week after the climate change conference in Glasgow finished, Mr Johnson will be asked about the final agreement that failed to commit to limiting global warming to 1.5C.
The PM is sure to get questions over why the initial target was not agreed on after COP26 president Alok Sharma was reduced to tears when India and China made a last-minute intervention that weakened the effort to end the use of coal power.
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‘Weight of world was on my shoulders’
Budget and the spending review
Less than a month since Rishi Sunak unveiled his latest budget, the PM will come up against five MPs over the economy, including Jeremy Hunt and Tobias Ellwood, who frequently stand up in the Commons to question the PM.
Some of the budget items Mr Johnson may face questions on include the Universal Credit taper being cut by 8% and the increase in the National Living Wage by 6.6% to £9.50 an hour after more than 18 months of heavy government spending due to COVID.
The axing of the Leeds leg of HS2 could also raise its head.
Politics
Tories warned Mark Menzies misuse of funds claims ‘constituted fraud’ but whistleblower told there was no ‘duty’ to report it
The Conservatives were warned ex-Tory MP Mark Menzies’s alleged misuse of party funds may have constituted fraud but the whistleblower was told there was no duty to report it
Mr Menzies, the MP for Fylde in Lancashire, gave up the Tory whip in the wake of reports in The Times that he misused party funds. He disputes the allegations.
The allegations came about after Mr Menzies former campaign manager, Katie Fieldhouse, spoke to the newspaper.
Mark Menzies pictured in Peru in 2020. Pic: AP
In a new interview with The Times this evening, Ms Fieldhouse, 78, claims she was told the Conservative Party was aware the allegations were potentially criminal.
She says the Conservative Party’s chief of staff “told me that when they first took over the investigation [from the Whips’ Office] they had consulted solicitors”.
She added: “He told me on the phone, ‘the solicitor said it is fraud but you are not duty-bound to report it because it’s not Conservative Party money’.”
The whistleblower said she was told the decision not to inform the police was made because it was donors’ money and not the party’s.
A Conservative spokesperson said: “The party is conducting an investigation into the claims made and has been doing so for several months.
“We will of course share any information with the police if they believe it would be helpful to any investigation they decide to undertake.
“Suggestions the party has not been seriously examining this matter are demonstrably false.”
Lancashire Police said today it was “reviewing” information about Mr Menzies after Labour asked for an investigation to take place.
In a statement, the force said: “We can confirm that we have now received a letter detailing concerns around this matter and we are in the process of reviewing the available information in more detail.”
Read more: All the Tory MPs suspended since Sunak became PM
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Ruth Davidson on Mark Menzies allegations
The party’s chief whip, Simon Hart, is said to have been made aware of the claims in January, when the former campaign manager reported what had happened.
Sky News understands there has been an investigation ongoing by Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) since the allegations were first raised, but further information came to light this week and Mr Hart acted immediately.
Speaking tonight, Labour’s chair Anneliese Dodds said: “The Conservative chairman and chief whip must urgently come out of hiding and explain what they knew and what advice they received.
“If, as reported, they or Conservative officials were warned about potentially fraudulent activity and chose not to go to the police, this would be indefensible.”
Mr Menzies, who has served as an MP since May 2010, is reported to have phoned his 78-year-old former campaign manager at 3.15am last December, saying he was locked in a flat by “bad people” and needed £5,000 as a matter of “life and death”.
The sum, which rose to £6,500, was eventually paid by his office manager from her personal bank account and subsequently reimbursed from funds raised from donors in an account named Fylde Westminster Group, the newspaper says.
Speaking to Sky News, Ms Fieldhouse said: “I am feeling dreadful because I am a devout Tory and as I have said to everybody else, I reported his actions to the chief whip… it is now the middle of April.
“Come to your own conclusions [about] what is happening.”
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Asked if she was disappointed with the way the complaint was being handled, she said: “Yes.”
Mr Menzies said on Thursday: “I strongly dispute the allegations put to me. I have fully complied with all the rules for declarations. As there is an investigation ongoing I will not be commenting further.”
Politics
Mark Menzies: Tory activist who reported MP over alleged misuse of funds disappointed by party response
A Tory activist who reported an MP over claims he misused party funds has told Sky News she is disappointed by the way her complaint has been handled.
Mark Menzies voluntarily quit the Conservative parliamentary party this week after a report in The Times claimed he called his ex-campaign manager Katie Fieldhouse, 78, early one day to say he was locked in a flat by “bad people” and needed £5,000 as a matter of “life and death”.
The sum, which rose to £6,500, was eventually paid by his office manager from her personal bank account and subsequently reimbursed from funds raised from donors in an account named Fylde Westminster Group, the newspaper said.
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But despite the incident taking place in December – and Ms Fieldhouse submitting her complaint in January – the Fylde MP had remained part of the parliamentary party and as a trade envoy for the government until the press reports surfaced.
He has now lost the Conservative whip and was suspended as one of Rishi Sunak’s envoys.
Mr Menzies strongly disputes the claims, which also include accusations he used campaign funds to pay his personal medical bills.
Speaking to Sky News’ Frazer Maude, Ms Fieldhouse said: “I am feeling dreadful because I am a devout Tory and as I have said to everybody else, I reported his actions to the chief whip… it is now the middle of April.
“Come to your own conclusions [about] what is happening.”
Asked if she was disappointed with the way the complaint was being handled, she said: “Yes.”
And asked if Mr Menzies should step down, she added: “It is for his conscience and the party to deal with. I have put my faith in the party, it is for them to deal with it.”
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Mr Sunak was also asked by reporters on Friday whether his former colleague should quit the Commons, and why it had taken until now for the party to act, but he said he would not comment while an investigation was being carried out.
Instead, the prime minister said: “It’s right that Mark Menzies has resigned the Conservative whip. He’s been suspended from his position as a trade envoy whilst the investigations into those allegations continue.
“For our part, I can’t comment on an ongoing investigation while it’s happening and he’s no longer a Conservative MP.”
Meanwhile, the Labour Party has written to Lancashire Police to demand an investigation into allegations of fraud and misconduct in public office.
Leader Sir Keir Starmer told broadcasters that the Conservatives “seem to have sat on their hands” over the allegations.
He added: “If they thought they could sweep this under the carpet somehow they were obviously very mistaken and that is why I think there are very serious questions now that need to be answered – not just by the individual but also by the government on this.”
And the Liberal Democrats have called for the ministerial ethics adviser to investigate chief whip Simon Hart’s handling of the complaint.
A “shoplifters’ charter” has seen thefts rise significantly – to about one offence every minute – but police are charging fewer people, according to Labour.
The party said data showed a record 402,482 shoplifting offences in England and Wales in the year to September 2023.
However, offences resulting in a police charge fell from 20% to 15% between 2018 and 2023, according to a Freedom of Information request.
Labour said offenders were getting off “scot-free” as the fall had not been matched by a rise in other penalties.
More than 54% of shoplifting offences are also dropped with no suspect identified, according to recent Home Office figures.
Labour partly blamed the situation on a 2014 move to introduce a “low value” shoplifting category for items worth under £200 in total.
Theresa May, then home secretary, brought it in to speed things up and allow police to deal with these offences by post.
But Labour and others, such as the British Retail Consortium, said it meant officers have deprioritised shoplifting.
The rise in shoplifting and attacks on staff have caused some retailers to lock away – or put security tags on – everyday products such as meat, butter, chocolate and coffee.
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Shoplifter ransacks Co-op
Co-op’s food business lost £33m in just six months last year as shoplifting cases surged.
A recent British Retail Consortium survey said the number of annual customer thefts across the UK had doubled to 16 million – far higher than the Home Office data.
Read more:
No excuse for shoplifting as benefits very generous, minister says
Middle-class shoplifters partly to blame, says M&S chairman
Shadow home secretary Yvette Copper said Labour would change the law as criminals are “getting away with it and more local businesses are paying the price”.
“The Conservative government has decimated neighbourhood policing, leaving our town centres unprotected, and they are still refusing to get rid of the £200 rule, which is encouraging repeat offending and organised gangs of shoplifters,” said Ms Cooper.
“Labour will scrap the Tories’ shoplifters’ charter and bring in a community policing guarantee, with 13,000 more neighbourhood police and PCSOs to crack down on shoplifting and keep the public safe.”
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Home Office minister Chris Philp said the “reality” was people in Labour-run areas were 20% more likely to be a victim of shoplifting, and 40% more likely to be a victim of crime, than those in Conservative areas.
“This month, Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives announced that serial or abusive shoplifters will face tougher punishments and we are making assault of a retail worker a standalone criminal offence,” Mr Philp added.
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