Commenting on the decision by Patrick Mercer MP to resign the Conservative whip today, Matthew Sinclair, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said:
"MPs must be absolutely transparent about declaring all outside income and obey the appropriate Commons rules. Any failure to do so is a very serious matter. “Details of the precise allegations against Mr Mercer are yet to emerge, but Newark residents will be intrigued as to why their MP has resigned from his party but not from Parliament. “Mr Mercer’s constituents should have the right to hold him to account for his actions if they feel he has let them down, but they cannot do so because the Government has failed to introduce the recall mechanism it promised in the Coalition Agreement. “Without a proper right of recall, MPs remain able to sit out a full five-year term, regardless of their conduct.
Click here to read We need a proper recall system, not a Westminster stitch-up