MP Scott Benton is facing a suspension from Parliament, after the Commons standards watchdog found he had committed a “very serious breach” of lobbying rules.
The Committee on Standards has recommended the MP should be suspended for 35 days which, if approved, could lead to a by-election.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Who is Scott Benton?
Benton (below) is currently the MP for Blackpool South – a position he was first elected to in the 2019 General Election.
Prior to this, the seat had been held by Labour’s Gordon Marsden since 1997.
However, Benton won the seat at the last Westminster election on just under 50% of the vote.
Why is he facing suspension?
Benton was suspended as a Tory MP earlier this year after he was filmed offering to lobby ministers for a fake company in a newspaper sting.
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In a meeting with reporters posing as investors from the gambling industry, he was caught offering to lobby ministers and table parliamentary questions.
The committee’s report said he had given the message “he was corrupt and ‘for sale’”.
The Tories only recently suffered a humiliating double whammy of by-election losses as Labour turned over huge majorities in Tamworth and Mid Bedfordshire.
The latter seat was previously held by former culture secretary Nadine Dorries.
What else has he done in politics?
Benton previously worked for Calder Valley MP Craig Whittaker and served as a councillor in Yorkshire for eight years.
Prior to this, he worked as a primary school teacher.
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