A Conservative found to have committed an “egregious” breach of lobbying rules has avoided an immediate suspension after MPs voted for a government-backed proposal to overhaul their disciplinary process.
In an unprecedented move, they chose not to back the cross-party Standards Committee’s call for a six-week ban from Parliament for Owen Paterson after it was ruled that he repeatedly lobbied ministers and officials for two companies paying him more than £100,000 per year.
