Miriam Cates, elected MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge in 2019, co-founded the New Conservatives group. Photo: Miriam Cates MP Pictured is a garden near Sheffield. Photo by Paul Cooper
Miriam Cates is being investigated by Westminster's standards watchdog over allegations she caused “significant harm” to the reputation of Parliament.
Daniel Greenberg, the parliamentary standards commissioner, announced on Monday that he was investigating the Conservative MP. In a statement, he said Ms Cates was being investigated for alleged breaches of the parliamentary code of conduct, but gave no further details.
The relevant rule is: “Members must never take any action that is likely to cause significant harm to the reputation or integrity of the House of Commons as a whole or its Members as a whole.”
Ms Cates has not commented on the opening of an investigation into her . Members of Parliament who are the subject of a Standards Commissioner investigation are barred from speaking about them, including revealing any details of the claims.
The requirement for secrecy has proven controversial, with John Bercow, the former Speaker of the House of Commons, describing it as “Kafkaesque process.”
Rishi Sunak came under investigation in April when his spokesman confirmed he was being probed into whether he had declared an interest in his wife's finances.
Under the code of conduct, Members of Parliament “shall not disclose details of any investigation… unless required by law or authorized by the Commissioner.”
However, Ms Cates is the fourth MP to be investigated by the Standards Commissioner after being linked to a drinks party taking place during lockdown.
She is reported to have attended the birthday party of Baroness Jenkin, peer Tory, and Virginia Crosbie MP, in December 2020. She has not commented on reports of her presence at the event.
Tory MP Sir Bernard Jenkin, Baroness Jenkin's husband, was also reported to be there, as was Dame Eleanor Lang, Deputy Speaker.
Ms Cates, Sir Bernard, Ms Crosby and Dame Eleanor are all being investigated by the Standards Commissioner under the same code of conduct clause.
Ms Crosby previously apologized for the “momentary error in attending an event,” which she insisted was not a birthday party. Dame Eleanor, at whose office the meeting was said to have been held, described it as a “business meeting” and said social distancing was being observed.
The Met separately investigated the event for possible violations of lockdown rules. On December 8, it released a statement saying the investigation had been closed and the meeting had not met the threshold for imposing fines on participants.
If found guilty of violating the code of conduct, deputies may face one of two consequences. In many cases, the standards commissioner will order them to make a public apology for their actions and promise not to repeat them.
In more serious incidents, he may refer them to the parliamentary standards committee, a cross-section of MPs, to launch its own investigation . The committee may recommend that MPs be suspended from parliament for long periods, triggering a recall petition in their constituency.
Ms Cates, MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge in South Yorkshire, is seen by some commentators as the MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge in South Yorkshire. rising star of the Tory right. She was elected in 2019 as part of a new cohort of Red Wall MPs who won seats in former Labor seats following Boris Johnson's landslide election victory.
She has since co-founded the New Conservatives, a powerful factions within the Tory party, which represents recruitment priorities in 2019.
Ms Cates has been an outspoken advocate for promoting traditional family values, often calling on the Tory leadership to take a stronger stance. She spoke of her concerns about Britain's falling birth rate, calling on her party to introduce policies to encourage marriage and children.
Her remarks about transgender rights and what she called “woman abolition”. “, drew sharp criticism from left-wing activists.
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