David Brown
Jim Devine, Eliot Morley, David Chaytor and Lord Hanningfield will appear in court today (PA)
Three Labour MPs and a Conservative peer pleaded not guilty to fiddling their Parliamentary expenses today as they continued to insist that they should not face justice in court.
Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine said they should be judged by the House of Commons authorities rather than endure a trial by jury.
During an historic court appearance a barrister for the three MPs said they were protected from prosecution by the ancient right of parliamentary privilege.
Julian Knowles told City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court it would also be unfair for the men to face a criminal trial when other MPs accused of fiddling their expenses had been dealt with by the parliamentary authorities.
The legitimacy of their expense claims should also be a matter for the parliamentary commissioner to rule on, he said. Hundreds of other MPs were last month told to pay back a total of £1.12 million after an audit of their expenses claims dating back to 2004.
The barrister requested that the MPs should be spared the humiliation of standing in the dock. He was denied. They spoke, from behind 12ft security glass, only to confirm their names and dates of birth.
Mr Knowles told District Judge Timothy Workman: “They also maintain that to prosecute them in the criminal courts for their parliamentary activities would infringe the principle of the separation of powers, which is one of the principles which underpins the UK’s constitutional structure.
“The principle of the subject matter of these proceedings is also covered by the Parliamentary privilege conferred upon [the MPs] by Article 9 of the Bill of Rights 1689.”
Lord Hanningfield also entered a not guilty plea in the court on charges relating to his claims for House of Lords allowances. His barrister indicated that he would also challenge the jurisdiction of the court.
If found guilty, the four men could face jail sentences of up to seven years.
The case was sent for trial at Southwark Crown Court where it is expected to be heard by Judge Geoffrey Rivlin on March 30. All three MPs are expected to seek legal aid for the trial.
Historians have said that this is the first time that four parliamentarians have been hauled before the courts together since the 17th century. It is also one of the first cases in a generation to involve the misuse of public money by MPs.
Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions, took the decision to charge the four men under the Theft Act 1968 last month. He has said prosecutors had concluded that “the applicability and extent of any parliamentary privilege claimed should be tested in court”.
Mr Morley, 57, the MP for Scunthorpe, is alleged to have dishonestly claimed a total of £30,428 more than he was entitled to in second home expenses on a house in Winterton, near Scunthorpe, between 2004 and 2007 - including 18 months after the mortgage on the property was paid off.
Mr Chaytor, 60, the MP of Bury North, was charged with claiming almost £13,000 in rent in 2005 and 2006 on a London flat which he owned. He is also accused of claiming £5,425 in 2007 and 2008 to rent a property in Lancashire owned by his mother. He is also alleged to have used false invoices to claim £1,950 for IT services in 2006.
Mr Devine, 56, the MP for Livingstone, is alleged to have claimed £3,240 for cleaning services using a and £5,505 for stationery using false invoices in 2008 and 2009.
All three MPs are represented by Gerald Shamash who had been the solicitor to the Labour Party from 1990 until he stood down to represent the men.
Lord Hanningfield faces six charges of false accounting, relating to claims for overnight allowances from the House of Lords between 2006 and 2009, when records allegedly show he was in fact driven to his home near Chelmsford, Essex.
The three MPs were barred from standing as Labour candidates at the forthcoming general election. Lord Hanningfield was suspended from the parliamentary Conservative Party and stood down as leader of Essex County Council.
After the brief hearing, Hanningfield issued a statement saying he was “devastated” by the affair. His spokesman Mark Spragg said: “Lord Hanningfield has devoted the last 40 years of his life to public service including both as leader of Essex County Council since 2000 and as a member of the House of Lords since 1998.
“He is devastated to be in this position. He feels he has been singled out. He does not believe that he has done anything dishonest.”
The three MPs left court without commenting. They got into a waiting black cab accompanied by their lawyers and escorted by police officers. There was a brief crush around the vehicle as protesters hurled abuse, shouting “pigs” and “oink, oink”.
The charges followed a nine-month police investigation triggered by the leak of expenses details. Insufficient evidence was found to press charges against former Labour chairman Lord Clarke of Hampstead.
Police are continuing their criminal investigations into the expenses claims of a handful of other MPs.
Harry Cohen, 60, the long-serving Labour MP for Leyton and Wanstead, is being investigated for claiming £70,000 for a “second home” while renting out his main property.
John Lyon, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, said that Mr Cohen’s claims represented a “particularly serious breach of the rules.”
The MP has apologised and said he would “not intentionally have wanted to do anything to tarnish Parliament’s reputation”.
Eric Illsley, the Labour MP for Barnsley Central, is also reportedly being investigated for allegedly making “phantom” claims for council tax.
Times Online
