Independent Expert Panel dismisses appeal by Scott Benton MP

This followed an investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards into whether Mr Benton had breached paragraph 11 of the Code of Conduct for Members of Parliament:

Members shall never undertake any action which would cause significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons as a whole, or of its Members generally.

Mr Benton referred himself to the Commissioner after details were published in April 2023 of a meeting between Mr Benton and undercover reporters of The Times newspaper who were posing as representatives of a fictitious company. The Committee found, in a report published on 14 December 2023 that in this meeting, Mr Benton made statements that indicated he had breached the House’s rules in the past, would be willing to breach or circumvent rules again on behalf of the company in return for payment and that other Members behaved in a similar manner.

Mr Benton appealed the Committee’s decision that he had breached the Code of Conduct and their decision on sanction. The IEP sub-panel, chaired by Professor Clare McGlynn KC (Hon), dismissed Mr Benton’s appeal - his sanction of 35 days suspension, with the concomitant loss of salary, stands.

The sub-panel’s reasons are set out in the IEP’s report on the case which is available on their website. (pdf, 472KB)

About The Independent Expert Panel

The Independent Expert Panel (IEP) hears:

• appeals against decisions made by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (the Commissioner), and considers referrals from the Commissioner and determines sanctions in cases involving an allegation against an MP of a breach of Parliament’s Sexual Misconduct Policy or the Bullying and Harassment policy, under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme; and
• appeals against decisions by the Committee on Standards in cases involving an allegation against an MP of a breach of the Code of Conduct for Members of Parliament.

The IEP was established by the House of Commons on 23 June 2020. Its remit was expanded in October 2022 to include appeals relating to the Code of Conduct.