British cabinet minister says MPs should not use parliamentary office for second jobs

MPs should not use their parliamentary office for work relating to their second jobs, a cabinet minister has told Sky News, as a senior Conservative faces allegations he misused his Commons office to carry out legal work.

According to The Times, former attorney general Sir Geoffrey Cox used his parliamentary office to undertake some of his work for law firm Withers.

His entry in the register of members interest shows he earned more than £800,000 for the firm, which is representing the British Virgin Islands government in a corruption case brought by the UK government.

Asked by Kay Burley if MPs should be using their parliamentary offices for outside work, Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “No.”

“You might be trying to draw me into some individual case,” he said, when asked what should happen to an MP if found to have done this.

“But, if someone believes for good reason that they might [be doing that] then what they should do is ask the appropriate authorities to look into it and they can get down to the facts.

“Whether it’s your parliamentary office or any other parliamentary stationery or anything that’s funded or supported by the taxpayer, of course, that should not be used.

Photo – British Health Secretary Sajid Javid. EPA-EFE/RONI REKOMAA

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