PARLIAMENTARY STANDARDS OF CONDUCT: CONDUCT OF LORD BLENCATHRA AND OTHERS

That this House believes that the standards of supervision of conduct in Parliament are deteriorating; notes the permissive decisions on cases involving Malcolm Rifkind, Jack Straw, Tim Yeo and Lord Blencathra; welcomes condemnation of the conduct of the three former MPs by independent bodies outside of Parliament; further notes that the Committee that adjudicated on Lord Blencathra was chaired by Lord Sewel, and was presumably informed by his own standards of acceptable behaviour; regrets the conduct of Lord Blencathra; and calls for a thorough re-assessment and reformation of Parliamentary standards bodies to strengthen their impartiality and credibility.