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'Golden goodbye' payments suspended for MPs facing criminal charges
9 Feb 2010The "golden goodbye" payments for three MPs facing criminal charges over their expenses will be suspended until legal proceedings are over, Commons Speaker John Bercow said.
Elliot Morley, Jim Devine and David Chaytor would have been entitled to resettlement grants on stepping down from the Commons at the general election, it emerged at the weekend.
All three Labour MPs, who yesterday had the party whip suspended, deny allegations of false accounting, and have pledged to defend themselves "robustly".
But Mr Bercow last night wrote to the Clerk of the House Malcolm Jack telling him to "suspend any payments which would otherwise be due and attributable to the Resettlement Grant in any case where criminal proceedings are brought in relation to any claim for expenses until the criminal proceedings have been finally disposed of".
MPs are entitled to payoffs of up to £65,000 when they leave Parliament at an election, depending on their age and length of service.
Under new rules expected to be passed over the next few days, members who refuse to hand over money demanded by Sir Thomas Legg's audit of expenses from 2004-08 will face having the money docked from any pay, allowances or grants due.
However, Mr Morley, Mr Devine and Mr Chaytor were not examined as part of the process because a police investigation was already under way - potentially making efforts to claw back cash more difficult.
Mr Bercow said Friday's announcement by the Crown Prosecution Service that charges were being brought had forced a re-examination of the situation.
Given that the three cases had not been examined by the Legg Review, he said, "the House itself may wish to consider the Members' conduct once the criminal proceedings are concluded.
"In such cases, it is necessary to take sensible precautions to ensure that any restitution can effectively be made."
The Members Estimate Committee, the body chaired by Mr Bercow which oversees expenses, had therefore decided any payments should be suspended, the Speaker said.
There was no comment from the three MPs on the suspension of the payments.
Tory leader David Cameron earlier seized on the withdrawal of the Labour whip from the trio as evidence Gordon Brown was out of touch on the expenses scandal.
Mr Cameron described the move, three days after the charges were announced, as a "humiliating" U-turn by the Prime Minister.
Labour insisted the suspension followed a review undertaken "immediately" after it became clear on Friday the MPs were facing trial.
Aides to Mr Cameron pointed out he removed the Tory whip from Lord Hanningfield within a couple of hours of charges against the peer being announced at the same time.
Mr Chaytor, Mr Morley, Mr Devine and Lord Hanningfield are all charged with counts of false accounting in their expenses claims.
They will appear at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court on March 11. If found guilty, they could face jail sentences of up to seven years.
Mr Cameron used a speech to blame the Prime Minister for helping create the culture that resulted in the collapse of public confidence in politics.
"Now I gather, in a humiliating change, they have actually withdrawn the Labour whip from all three of those MPs. They are now in a headlong retreat," he said.
"The last 24 hours, I believe, have shown the instincts of the Conservative Party, when it comes to this issue about expenses, are in tune with the public mood, are in the right place, and Labour's are not."
But the Conservative leader also faced criticism for his outspoken attack on the three MPs' attempts to avoid prosecution by citing parliamentary privilege.
He said the move had provoked "disgust" and asked shadow leader of the House Sir George Young to draft legislation to clarify the rules and prevent the principle being misused.
Downing Street said the Government would also legislate to clarify the situation if it proved necessary.
However, Labour figures suggested Mr Cameron risked prejudicing court proceedings.
Commons Leader Harriet Harman said: "He's got to be very careful what he says or his comments might actually jeopardise the trial, and nobody wants to see that happen."
Mr Morley, Mr Devine and Mr Chaytor issued a joint statement yesterday saying they were not trying to "avoid culpability or seek immunity, but simply to determine the correct forum in which to make our case.
"Indeed, the DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer) in his statement on 5th February concluded the applicability and extent of any parliamentary privilege should be tested in court," they added.
Separately, Mr Bercow ordered MPs, under sub judice rules, to avoid any reference to the cases in the House.
