Conway may still face police probe

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair said they were not "ignoring the situation" as one of his senior officers asked a sleaze watchdog if they wanted the force to look into the case.

But his comments caused confusion at Westminster, as Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon's office insisted it had already been made clear they were not referring the matter.

The decision not to call in the police was announced by Sir George Young when he told MPs that Mr Conway would be suspended from the Commons for 10 days and forced to repay the money. Sir George chairs the Commons Standards and Privileges Committee to which Mr Lyon reports.

Sir Ian, however, suggested his force had been unable to proceed with any investigation of other complaints against Mr Conway because it had not been notified by Mr Lyon of his decision.

"There is a protocol. The protocol was agreed with the previous Parliamentary Standards Commissioner," he told a meeting of the Metropolitan Police Authority. "It doesn't appear from the face of it that that protocol was fully followed in this particular case and what we have done is to write to the Standards Commissioner and ask him whether he is going to refer the matter to the MPS, and if he isn't what are his reasons and we await that answer."

He continued: "The MPS can - and has demonstrably - investigated matters wherever they arise. But we obviously, and as in the Electoral Commission or in the benefits department or wherever else, we start with the position that the adjudicating authority has a right and role first and we will wait and see what the answer is.

"We are just trying to follow the process but we haven't, and we are not, ignoring the situation."

But Mr Lyon's office rejected any suggestion that they were required to directly inform the Met of any decision not to refer a case to the police. "No such protocol exists," his spokeswoman insisted - saying that the situation over referral to the police remained as it was when Sir George made his statement to the Commons.

Mr Conway said he had had no contact from Scotland Yard over the matter, despite a complaint being lodged by a former political rival.