
[ad_1]
LONDON – A small group of British MPs make overseas visits collectively worth tens of thousands of pounds each year, paid for by private companies or foreign governments with questionable human rights records.
The visits often stem from MPs’ membership of “Country APPGs” — obscure, cross-party groups set up by backbench MPs to build closer ties with foreign nations, which POLITICO is currently investigating.
The MPs involved emphasize that all-party parliamentary groups can play a valuable role in building links abroad and that their trips abroad complement their duties as local lawmakers.
But there are large discrepancies in the amount of time different MPs choose to devote to such foreign travel, with frequent trips being taken when Parliament is in session as well as during holiday periods.
An analysis by POLITICO found that there are currently about 10 “super members” who have signed up for roles with 20 or more separate “country APPGs.” Some have accepted dozens of free trips abroad during their time in parliament, paid for by foreign governments or businesses.
Collectively, this small group of backbench politicians have made overseas visits worth more than £453,000 since entering parliament, according to official records. The true figure is likely higher, as MPs began disclosing the cost of gifts and hospitality in 2009.
The data includes:
Seven trips by Conservative MP Martin Vickers in which he was accompanied by his wife or an unnamed member of staff.
Three trips of six or more days, including a week-long visit to Singapore, by Labour’s John Speller.
Trips worth £70,800 by Tory MP Mark Menzies since entering parliament in 2010, including six separate trips in calendar year 2016 alone.
A trip to Hong Kong cost £10,359 by the SNP’s Angus Brendan McNeill – the most expensive single trip.
20 trips over 17 years by Daniel Kawczynski, including visits to Morocco, Albania and Mauritania paid for by mining and chemical manufacturing companies.
13 trips in the past seven years by the SNP’s Lisa Cameron, including two trips to New York over a three-week period.
Three trips to Sri Lanka and three to the Maldives by Ian Paisley Jr of the DUP.
Trips cost £84,680 by Tory MP Mark Pritchard since entering parliament in 2005. He made six foreign trips in 2015 and seven in 2016 and has visited Qatar three times in the last three years.
Andrew Rosindale has made sixteen trips to Gibraltar since he became MP in 2001, sometimes more than once a year, and to a total of 29 other countries.
Conservative MP Sheryl Murray’s ten trips with an unnamed member of staff.
There is a widespread pattern of MPs who frequently travel to countries known as tax havens, petrochemical producers or luxury destinations – including the Channel Islands, Gulf States, San Marino and the Norfolk Islands in the Pacific.
MPs’ contributions to Parliament about these countries varied: some praised the places they had visited; Some did not mention them at all; While others accepted the hospitality of foreign governments they had previously criticized.
Almost all of the visits disclosed cost £1,000 or more.
All trips were made public in accordance with parliamentary rules about gifts and hospitality, but campaigners have raised questions about MPs’ overseas activities.
Rose Whiffen, a spokeswoman for Transparency International, said that while APPGs can help inform debate, they are “a well-known way for private companies and foreign governments to gain direct access to MPs and allies.”
She added: “These findings show why there should be stricter limits on MPs and peers accepting overseas travel. There is a clear risk that overseas trips funded by foreign governments could give rise to the perception – or reality – that MPs’ judgment is theirs. Impressed by the generosity of the hosts.”
John O’Connell, chief executive of the Taxpayers Alliance, added: “Constituents will ask whether all these trips are really necessary.
“While these trips have not been on taxpayers’ money, they have been on taxpayers’ time. MPs should ensure that foreign travel does not interfere with home responsibilities.
MPs contacted by POLITICO, however, insisted that foreign trips were a legitimate and valuable part of their work as backbench members, and that those trips were often spread over several years in parliament. They said the itinerary is packed with political and cultural encounters that can enhance understanding of foreign issues and help build closer ties.
Vickers said: “Exchange visits by parliamentarians are essential to building relationships between the UK and other nations,” and noted that he had paid for his wife’s travel, except in the case of a recent visit to Gibraltar.
However, many of the trips are paid for by countries with controversial records on human rights, such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, while some organizations that pay for the trips are associated with authoritarian regimes, such as the European Azerbaijan Society.
“For a certain group of MPs who don’t have many career prospects, these trips are essentially seen as entertainment – a great way to pass the time,” said the former Foreign Office minister.
A House of Commons Standards Committee report earlier this year found that “a dramatic increase in the number of APPGs … has created the conditions for undue influence and access” which “could represent the next great parliamentary scandal.”
The committee found that, when it comes to foreign visits, it is “difficult to avoid the presumption” that foreign governments are trying to “buy a good opinion” of their country or their government, noting that some other countries do not have elected representatives. Permission to accept such hospitality.
One of the MPs, Ian Paisley Jr, was previously reprimanded for failing to properly advertise overseas trips.
[ad_2]
Source link