{"id":120969,"date":"2023-11-30T11:50:10","date_gmt":"2023-11-30T11:50:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogcamlodipine.com\/?p=120969"},"modified":"2023-11-30T11:50:10","modified_gmt":"2023-11-30T11:50:10","slug":"snps-westminster-chief-stephen-flynn-broke-mp-rules-with-anti-labour-stunt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogcamlodipine.com\/politics\/snps-westminster-chief-stephen-flynn-broke-mp-rules-with-anti-labour-stunt\/","title":{"rendered":"SNP\u2019s Westminster chief Stephen Flynn broke MP rules with anti-Labour stunt"},"content":{"rendered":"

SNP’s Stephen Flynn heckled at PMQs<\/h3>\n

The SNP\u2019s Westminster leader broke Commons rules around the use of taxpayer-funded stationery, the house\u2019s top rules enforcer has concluded.<\/p>\n

Daniel Greenberg, the Commons\u2019 standards chief, was forced to investigate the SNP boss after a complaint was made following an anti-Labour stunt.<\/p>\n

Ahead of a PMQs session in July, Stephen Flynn sent Westminster journalists a mug reading \u201cControls on family sizes: what\u2019s the point of Labour?\u201d after Sir Keir Starmer refused to back the abolition of the two-child benefit cap.<\/p>\n

Accompanying the mugs was a slip of Commons headed note paper, reading: \u201cThe Labour Party has a new range of mugs in production. They’re made in China – just like Sir Keir Starmer’s latest policy\u201d.<\/p>\n

MP rules state that taxpayer-funded materials such as stationery cannot be used for party political purposes.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: <\/strong> SNP Westminster leader faces probe for misusing taxpayer-funded stationery<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

After being placed under investigation in August – first revealed by the Express – today Mr Greenberg published his conclusion.<\/p>\n

On September 20 he wrote to Mr Flynn informing him the stunt had amounted \u201cto a breach of paragraph 8 of the Code of Conduct\u201d.<\/p>\n

Typically such breaches are considered fairly minor, and Mr Greenberg gave the SNP Westminster leader the opportunity to avoid further repercussions provided he made an apology and acknowledged he had broken the rules.<\/p>\n

Unusually, however, Mr Flynn refused to take the conclusion lying down.<\/p>\n

Throughout the investigation, he maintained that the use of his headed Commons note paper in the stunt wasn\u2019t party political, but in fact supported his parliamentary duties and refuted any breach of MP rules.<\/p>\n

He maintained that in his use of the slips he was \u201crepresenting and furthering the interests of the public, scrutinising and holding Government (and Official Opposition) to account\u201d.<\/p>\n

He also questioned whether the investigation was proportional, given the total value of the stationery used was 28p.<\/p>\n

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