Shamed MP Rob Roberts is to be able to return to parliament after serving his six-week suspension for sexual misconduct, after ministers decided not to table a motion for expulsion from the Commons.
The Delyn MP has been suspended from the Conservative party and is expected to return in 12 July as an independent.
But Leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg has decided not to bring forward an expulsion motion, despite making clear that he believes it would be “honourable” for Mr Roberts to stand down as an MP.
It is understood that Mr Rees-Mogg considers that attempting retrospectively to apply an additional sanction would violate the independence of the panel set up to investigate grievances in the Commons.
Challenged over why the government was not taking action to force the recall of the MP, Boris Johnson’s press secretary today told reporters: “Rob Roberts had the whip suspended and is no longer a Conservative MP. Any further decisions on the whip are a matter for the Chief Whip.”
Discussions are under way at the House of Commons Commission over possible changes to parliamentary rules to trigger automatic recall for significant breaches.
Mr Rees-Mogg has argued in the Commission – which also includes the Speaker of the Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle and representatives of opposition parties – that changes could be made without the need for legislation.
Any such change could be taken into account by the Independent Expert Panel when deciding punishments for MPs found to have breached their code of conduct in future.
The Leader of the Commons last month told MPs: “Following a case of this severity in which it would be honourable for a member to stand down after the withdrawal of the whip, we need to look at whether the process is striking the right balance between the defendants, protecting the confidentiality of the complainants, and in ensuring consistent outcomes across different types of conduct case.”
Mr Rees-Mogg said it was “frankly ridiculous” that there are more serious sanctions for “somebody who uses a few envelopes incorrectly than for somebody who is involved in sexual misconduct”.
In its report last month, the IEP found that Mr Roberts made repeated and unwanted sexual advances towards a male parliamentary staff member, using his position as his employer to place him under pressure to accede. He was also found to have made inappropriate comments of a sexual nature and been overly intrusive about the complainant’s personal life.
A motion for expulsion can be tabled by the government, the opposition or the Backbench Business Committee.
