Raab defends MP slated for lucrative second job and voting remotely from Caribbean

Former attorney-general Sir Geoffrey Cox has received sharp criticism after it was revealed he had taken up a second job in the British Virgin Islands.

However deputy prime minister and justice secretary Dominic Raab has defended his decision this morning, telling Times Radio that: “Having the former attorney general is a legitimate thing to do” in reference to Cox’s offering legal advice to the government of the British Virgin Islands as  he has “got some knowledge of what’s going on”.

He further defended the current system in an interview with LBC radio, saying: “Well, you know about it [Cox’s external jobs] precisely because of the transparency that’s required and ultimately in terms of accountability it’s for the voters, the listeners watching your show, to hold all of us to account, that’s the ultimate accountability we have in our democracy.”

Due to lockdown rules, he was able to vote in parliament via proxy while spending weeks in the British Virgin Islands working for international law firm Withers.

Cox has spoken in one Commons’ debate since he was sacked as attorney general by Boris Johnson last year.

Labour MP Karl Turner criticised Cox via Twitter: