UK government admits it was wrong over lawmaker lobbying

A chastened British government has admitted that it was wrong to try to block a lawmaker’s suspension for breaching ethics rules

A chastened British government admitted Tuesday that it was wrong to try to block a lawmaker’s suspension for breaching ethics rules, an episode that both ruling party and opposition legislators said had tarnished the country's political system.

Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg who is a member of the government, said it had been “a mistake” to try to force an overhaul of Parliament’s standards process rather than suspend fellow Conservative Owen Paterson for breaking lobbying rules.

“We expect all members to abide by the prevailing rules of conduct. Paid lobbying is wrong, and members found guilty of this should pay the necessary penalties,” Rees-Mogg said.

The House of Commons standards committee recommended that Paterson be suspended for 30 days for lobbying on behalf of two companies that paid him more than 100,000 pounds ($137,000) a year. Usually, such decisions are rubber-stamped by lawmakers, but the government ordered Conservative legislators this month to oppose the suspension and instead call for an overhaul of Parliament’s standards process.

The government changed course the next day after a furious backlash. Paterson resigned from Parliament but lawmakers on Tuesday formally endorsed his censure.

Labour lawmaker Thangam Debbonaire said the government had treated the rules with “disdain, frankly incompetence, and a total absence of leadership.”

Former Prime Minister Theresa May, a Conservative, said the government’s behavior had been “ill-judged and just plain wrong.”

“Let’s be clear: this is not a party political issue,” May said. “Damage has been done to all members of Parliament and to Parliament as a whole.”

The Paterson case has fueled the latest allegations that Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Conservative government don’t follow rules that apply to everyone else.

Johnson himself has been criticized for accepting expensive vacations on the Caribbean island of Mustique and in Spain. He also faces investigation by Parliament’s standards watchdog over the source of the money that was used to refurbish his apartment in the prime minister’s official Downing Street residence

The often-lucrative second jobs held by lawmakers — largely, but not exclusively Conservative ones - has caused mounting anger