Conservative MPs accused of ‘rewriting rules to protect one of their own’

Responding to Conservative MPs voting for an amendment to prevent Owen Paterson from being suspended despite him having been found to have misused his position, Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Wendy Chamberlain MP has said:

“This is a shameful move by Conservative MPs to rewrite the rules to look after one of their own. It’s also sheer hypocrisy after ministers claimed they couldn’t change the rules retrospectively to allow Rob Roberts to be voted out by his constituents.

“To have ministers actively working to undermine the running of Parliament like this is unprecedented and deeply worrying. The government is watering down the independent scrutiny we need to prevent more sleaze scandals dragging our politics through the mud.

“This stitch up is something you’d expect in a tin pot dictatorship, not the home of parliamentary democracy.”

13 Conservative MPs voted against the Leadsom amendment yesterday afternoon.