The removal of Conservative MP Scott Benton after he offered to reveal confidential government policies to a gambling firm has shed new light on Westminster lobbying and the dark world of All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPG).
Mr. Benton, who was whipped yesterday after being caught secretly stabbing, is currently the chairman of the Betting and Gaming APPG, which bills itself as a “middleman” between the gaming industry and the government.
Member of Parliament for Blackpool South was admitted Time He said he could question ministers on behalf of lobbyists looking to invest in the UK gambling industry if they paid him £2,000-3,000 a month.
During his two years as APPG Chairman of Betting and Gaming, Mr. Benton accepted £8,500 worth of tickets at Ascot, Wimbledon, various football matches and the Brit Awards, which were paid for by betting companies and the industry organization Betting and Gambling. Advice.
While there is no indication that Mr. Benton has used his APPG presidency for financial gain, he has raised concerns about the influence of dark groups in Westminster and beyond.
There are more than 750 informal cross-party groups of MPs and peers in total, covering everything from signs to cybersecurity, yoga, wine and spirits.
MEPs insist that informal groups can forge links on specific issues between parties and act more dexterously than individual committees, which are often slow to prepare reports and organize meetings.
Campaign groups can use Parliament buildings for their meetings and events, create influential reports on specific issues, and even use Parliament’s special grill logo on all the material they produce, but unlike some committees, they have no official status.
While many are doing a good job, including a separate APPG on gambling-related harm, others have more obscure intentions, raising concerns about a potential backdoor.
In a scathing report released by the House of Commons Standards Committee on Wednesday, the day Mr Benton’s revelations broke, senior MPs warned that APPG is one of the “easiest ways” for companies to influence new legislation.
Chris Bryant, leader of the Labor Standards Committee, described these groups as “the soft underside of parliamentary access”, calling for a total ban on foreign government funded APPGs.
Nearly 140 groups are linked to other countries and claim to promote good relations between foreign governments and the UK. However, some have expressed particular concern about possible foreign influence in recent years.
Qatar
The Qatari government has spent more than £250,000 on flights, luxury hotel stays and receptions for MPs, most of whom were APPG members in Qatar, ahead of last year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
This comes as the sporting tournament drew increased attention to Qatar’s human rights record and the country’s stance on LGBT+ rights, amid concerns about the treatment of migrant workers at World Cup venues, as well as female fans and gay men flocking to watch football.
But criticism in Westminster was more muted as several APPG members were showered with gifts from the Qatari government and struggled to defend the country ahead of the tournament.
Alun Cairns, Qatar’s APPG leader who received £9,323 in donations from Doha in 2022, spoke in the House of Commons last October praising Qatar and “paying tribute” to its response to the humanitarian crisis. Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, David Mundell, deputy leader of APPG, who received £7,473 worth of hospitality from Qatar last year, dismissed concerns about LGBT+ rights in the Middle East kingdom, saying there are also “serious problems with professional football in the UK.” “. .
Mr. Cairns and Mr. Mundell were asked to comment.
China
Transparency advocates have also raised concerns about the APPG on China, which invited Chinese Ambassador Zheng Jieguang to speak in parliament in 2021.
The invitation comes despite Beijing recently sanctioning nine British MPs for alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang.
It was quickly blocked by Speakers of both Houses of Parliament, with Speaker of the House Lindsey Hoyle stating: “I don’t think it’s appropriate for a Chinese Ambassador to meet at the House of Commons estate and our workplace when his country has sanctioned some of our members.”
APPG China, set up in 2015 to develop closer ties between London and Beijing, has also raised the issue of large corporate donations.
Wealthy backers including HSBC, John Swire & Sons, Arup and the City of London Corporation, all of whom have significant business interests in China, have pledged more than £110,000 to the group in recent years.
All donations have been made and announced in accordance with parliamentary rules. However, MEPs have suggested that the business interests of companies raise questions about the appropriateness of gifts.
Last January, MI5 also sounded the alarm about another APPG linked to China. The security service said Christine Li, an alleged Chinese “spy”, helped establish China in the UK APPG to advance the interests of the Chinese Communist Party.
Former Labor Secretary Barry Gardiner was revealed to have received more than £500,000 from Ms Lee’s company to cover staff costs, while smaller sums went to Labor headquarters and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey.
MI5 claimed it was part of Ms Lee’s efforts to influence British politicians while facilitating donations from Hong Kong and mainland Chinese figures. China denied the allegations, accusing MI5 of “slandering and persecuting” the British-Chinese community.
covid vaccinations
Even the APPG, with no obvious financial ties, irritated the parliament. The removal of Andrew Bridgen from the Conservative MP in January after comparing the introduction of the Covid-19 vaccine to the Holocaust sheds light on a new APPG that recently entered Parliament: the APPG on the dangers of the Covid-19 vaccine.
It was later revealed that Mr Bridgen had invited Asim Malhotra, a Harley Street doctor whose criticism of the Covid vaccine was dismissed by experts, to speak at an event at Parliament House hosted by APPG last October.
A week later, Mr Bridgen made his first substantive public remark about vaccine safety during a parliamentary debate, noting that he was “pleased” to meet Mr Malhotra at an APPG event.
This revived concerns about the privileged access granted to those associated with APPG.
Those fears were exacerbated earlier this year when it was revealed that James Freeman Wells, a former MP who represented Wales for the Brexit party in Brussels, offered paid followers of his Patreon account access to APPG events. turtle.
Other attendees at APPG events included members of the Health Advisory and Recovery Group, an anti-lockdown advocacy group.
sex travel
Meanwhile, policy last year MPs were reported to have used parliamentary trips abroad to purchase the services of sex workers. Anonymous politicians, officials and diplomats told the website that a number of unnamed MPs have visited brothels on trips abroad organized by APPG with connections abroad.
In response to the allegations, the chairman of the standards committee, Mr Bryant, said: I that the accusations could “give the impression that all MPs are cowards” and that APPG could still stand if the system were tightened up.
In the commission’s latest report, released yesterday, Mr. Bryant suggested that APPG should not receive funding from foreign governments, but he did not advocate a ban on fully paid international travel.
This was told by the activists of the Transparency movement. I that such “egregious loopholes” must be “urgently addressed” if APPG is to maintain any degree of credibility.
Steve Goodrich, Head of Research and Investigation at Transparency International UK, said it was becoming increasingly clear that “private interests and foreign actors have used APPG as a loophole for parliamentary lobbying”.
“While we welcome the Reform Standards Committee’s recent recommendations, glaring loopholes remain, such as reimbursement for any expenses paid by foreign governments,” he said. I.
“The fact that corrupt, repressive and even hostile regimes can legally pay for the travel of MPs abroad is incredible and needs to be addressed urgently.”
Source: I News
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