Boris Johnson has refused to intervene after Tory MP Geoffrey Cox voted from the Caribbean during lockdown, saying the controversy is not a matter for him.
Asked if it was “appropriate” for the former attorney general to have worked in the British Virgin Islands, the prime minister’s spokesman said the “rules are set” by the Commons – not by No 10.
Asked, three times, if the government would quiz Sir Geoffrey over his activities earlier this year, the spokesman declined to say that he would.
The stance came as Labour demanded No 10 investigate whether the £1m-earning lawyer “is a Caribbean-based barrister or a Conservative MP”.
Mr Johnson’s spokesman also said, for the first time, that he opposes an “outright ban” on MPs having second jobs, having previously said that is a matter for the Commons to decide.
However, he refused to say what “outright” means – appearing to leave open the option of supporting a ban on the most controversial jobs, working as a consultant or adviser.
Sir Geoffrey is at the eye of the sleaze row after spending several weeks in the British Virgin Islands in April and May this year, 4,000 miles away from his Devon constituency.
He voted by proxy, exploiting rules brought in to ensure MPs were not excluded because of having to isolate because of catching Covid, or because of medical conditions.
Just as controversially, he earned more than £150,000 as a lawyer advising the Caribbean tax haven over corruption charges brought by the Foreign Office.
The job contributed to more than £1m in legal fees the QC earned since the start of 2020 – working more than 20 hours a week – on top of his £81,932 salary as an MP.
Anneliese Dodds, the Labour Party chair, demanded an investigation, calling the issue “a question of leadership” for the prime minister.
“It appears that your former attorney general is profiting from advising an administration accused of corruption and tax avoidance,” a letter to Mr Johnson reads.
“Sir Geoffrey’s behaviour means it looks like he’d rather get a tax haven off the hook than represent the interests of his constituents.”
There is no suggestion the barrister broke any Commons rules and the prime minister’s spokesman insisted he “cannot comment on individual MPs”.
Asked if his behaviour was appropriate, he said: “The prime minister’s view is that MPs’ primary job is and must be to serve their constituents and to represent their interests in Parliament.
“They should be visible in their constituencies and available to help constituents with their constituency matters.
“If they’re not doing that, they’re not doing their job, and will be rightly judged on that by their constituents.”
The spokesman declined to say how it should be judged whether an MP is making that their “primary job” – the time spent on it, or relative earnings, for example – and said no fresh guidance would be issued to Tories.
