Conservative MP Owen Paterson Faces 30-Day Suspension From Parliament

(Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images)
(Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Conservative MP Owen Paterson should be suspended for 30 days over an “egregious case of paid advocacy”, the parliamentary committee on standards has recommended.

The watchdog made the recommendation on Tuesday morning after he was found to have repeatedly lobbied ministers and officials on behalf of two companies for which he was acting as a paid consultant – Randox, and Lynn’s Country Foods.

But Paterson rejected the findings. “This is a biased process and not fair,” he said.

“It offends against the basic standard of procedural fairness that no-one should be found guilty until they have had a chance to be heard and to present their evidence including their witnesses.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. Follow HuffPost UK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost UK and has been updated.