2024 Blackpool South recall petition
A by-election is expected to be held in the Blackpool South consituency following the resignation of the sitting MP Scott Benton.
Background
Corruption allegations
In April 2023 The Times published an article resulting from a sting operation alleging that Benton was willing to table parliamentary questions, leak documents and lobby ministers on behalf of gambling companies in return for "thousands of pounds per month".[1] Benton was subsequently suspended from the Conservative Party,[2] sitting thereafter as an independent MP.[3]
In December 2023 the House of Commons' Standards Committee found that he had breached the House's rules and recommended a 35-day suspension from the House.[4] This finding was appealed to the Independent Expert Panel, but the panel "found no substance" in Benton's arguments and dismissed the appeal.[5] On 27 February 2024 the Commons approved a motion suspending Benton from the House for 35 days.[3]
Recall petition
As the length of Benton's suspension exceeded the 10-day threshold designated in the Recall of MPs Act 2015, this triggered the recall procedure.[3]
The signing period began on Tuesday 12 March and was set to run until Monday 22 April 2024. There were eight designated signing places within the constituency open for signing on working days during the petition period. Persons registered to vote via post or proxy were able to sign the petition by these means.[6] The number of signatures required for the petition to be successful, 10% of the constituency's electorate, was 5,634.[6]
Resignation
On 25 March 2024, two weeks into the petition, Benton announced he was resigning from Parliament. This will result in the petition being aborted and a by-election held.[7]
By-election
The by-election is expected to be held on 2 May 2024, concurrently with local elections.[7]
References
- ^ Kenber, Billy; Nachiappan, Arthi (6 April 2023). "Exposed: How Tory MP offered to lobby for gambling investors". The Times. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
- ^ "Scott Benton suspended as Tory MP after lobbying sting". 5 April 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
- ^ a b c "Scott Benton: Lobbying scandal MP recall petition triggered". BBC News. 2024-02-27. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- ^ "Scott Benton - Second Report of Session 2023–24". 14 December 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
- ^ Rogers, Alexandra; Scott, Jennifer (27 February 2024). "Rishi Sunak braced for another by-election after ex-Tory MP Scott Benton suspended from Commons". Sky News. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Recall petition - Blackpool South". 12 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Former Tory MP resigns leaving PM to face new by-election". BBC News. 2024-03-25. Retrieved 2024-03-25.