Scott Benton had the Tory whip suspended earlier this month after an undercover Times expose allegedly showed him offering to lobby ministers on behalf of gambling investors. The Commons standards watchdog’s website says Mr Benton is under investigation for “actions causing significant damage to the reputation of the House as a whole, or of its Members generally”. pic.twitter.com/XJxicfR05J — Scott Benton MP 🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🍊 (@ScottBentonMP) March 17, 2023Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Daniel Greenberg opened a first probe two weeks ago into Mr Benton’s use of his parliamentary email address. In The Times’ footage, Mr Benton also said he was willing to leak sensitive information to a bogus investment fund and ask parliamentary questions on its behalf. Meanwhile, Mr Greenberg also extended an investigation into allegations Prime Minister Rishi Sunak possibly failed to declare the shares his wife holds in a childcare agency that was boosted by the Budget.

Source: The Times April 24, 2023 12:23 UTC