Sleaze watchdog says plans to oust errant politicians are ‘open to abuse’

Allowing as few as one in ten voters to trigger a by-election against MPs guilty of serious rule breaches is “open to abuse”, a Westminster sleaze watchdog cautioned.

The Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) said it backed the introduction of “recall” powers but suggested signatures sent in the post or by proxy should not be counted.

Safeguards were needed as the threshold was lower than that used in other countries, it said.

At present, MPs can be expelled from parliament only if they are jailed for more than 12 months – with punishments for less serious wrongdoing proposed by a committee of MPs.

The Standards and Privileges Committee generally recommends short suspensions and apologies.

Government proposals published last month would instead force a by-election if the signatures of 10 per cent of the electorate in an MP’s constituency were gathered in favour.

But a recall petition could only be held if the MP has been jailed for less than a year or if the Commons agreed that he or she was guilty of serious wrongdoing.

Setting out the CSPL’s response to a consultation on the proposals, chairman Sir Christopher Kelly, said: “The committee supports the principle that constituents should be able to petition for the recall of an MP whose conduct falls seriously below the standards expected of those elected to public office.”