Ministerial Appointments: Vetting and Managing Conflicts of Interest Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Cabinet Office

Ministerial Appointments: Vetting and Managing Conflicts of Interest

Stella Creasy Excerpts
Monday 23rd January 2023

(1 year, 9 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts

Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Jeremy Quin Portrait Jeremy Quin
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

I have a great deal of respect for the right hon. Gentleman, but he knows that I do not know the answer to that question—I genuinely do not. But I have no doubt that the work of the independent adviser will establish the facts and that that will be reported to the Prime Minister.

Stella Creasy Portrait Stella Creasy (Walthamstow) (Lab/Co-op)
- View Speech - Hansard - -

The challenge here for the Minister is that the original allegations arose in July of last year, publicly. Indeed, there was subsequent evidence that lawyers were instructed to try to suppress those allegations, well before any appointment was made by his political party, or indeed by the Prime Minister. The Minister talks about allegations arising this weekend. Whose due diligence was lacking: was it the Cabinet Office’s, was it the Conservative office’s, or are we just not being told the whole truth in this matter?