Kensington MP suspended from Tory Party

The party whip and MP Sir Malcolm Rifkind has been suspended from the Conservative party in parliament after becoming embroiled in ‘cash for access’ allegations.

In an investigation conducted for an episode of Channel 4’s documentary series Dispatches, journalists met with Rifkind, pretending to represent a Chinese firm that was interested in putting experienced businessmen and politicians on the company’s board.

The former minister and foreign secretary was secretly filmed apparently offering his services to a fake Chinese firm, created for the purposes of the Dispatches investigation, in return for cash.

In the undercover footage Rifkind remarked, “You’d be surprised how much free time I have. I spend a lot of time reading, I spend a lot of time walking. Because I’m not a minister or full-time working for one person. I can sort out my day. I am self-employed so nobody pays my salary. I have to earn my income but when I’m not doing something I can do what I like.” Rifkind is not self-employed, due to his £67k salary as a member of parliament for Kensington.

Dipatches also met with former Labour minister and foreign secretary Jack Straw with a similar offer. In the meeting, Straw, who is standing down at the upcoming election, says “The best way of dealing with these things is under the radar” In the undercover investigation he was filmed asking what the organisation would want from him and what the time commitments would be, before explaining that “Normally, if I’m doing a speech or something it’s £5000 a day, that’s what I charge.”

In a subsequent BBC news interview, Mr Straw remarked that “This was a very sophisticated, skilful deceit and like Malcolm Rifkind I fell into it.

In Sir Malcolm Rifkind’s Today interview, the MP said the claims are "unfounded and I am going to fight them with all my strength.” He declared "I’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. Every single thing I said to these people, I would have been willing to say on television or to you if you’d put the same questions to me at the time.” He went on to contend that it is perfectly acceptable for MPs to have outside interests.

Rifkind argued that it is unrealistic for MPs to live on £67k, because “the vast majority of people of a business or professional background earn far, far more than that”, going onto say that “they just won’t come to the House of Commons at all, and parliament will lose their skills."

Sir Malcolm has said he would not stand down as chair of parliament’s intelligence and security committee, unless his colleagues on the committee insisted, and criticised Channel 4 for declining his offer to defend himself in the documentary which is due to air at 20:00 this evening. Rifkind is likely to retain his Kensington seat at the upcoming election.

It is believed that hundreds of MPs and peers have taken on similar agreements to those offered by Sir Malcolm and Mr Straw. This fresh ‘cash for access’ touches on the wider issues of transparency in Westminster, the buying of politicans and MP salaries.

Politicians for hire airs on 23rd February at 20:00 on Channel 4.