Undue Influence
| Use attributes for filter ! | |
| Originally published | July 6, 1994 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Steve Martini |
| Adaptations | Steve Martini: Undue Influence |
| Date of Reg. | |
| Date of Upd. | |
| ID | 2360181 |
About Undue Influence
Pakistan football: The British players starring on the world stage
... National football in the country has also been suspended twice by Fifa in the last four years for " Undue Influence from third parties"...
Niger coup: Fear and anger in Niamey as Ecowas threatens force
... Paris is accused of continuing to wield Undue Influence in Niger long after independence and unfairly benefiting from its natural resources while most people live below the poverty line...
Lisa Marie Presley: When a celebrity dies, who gets what can get messy
... The two most common ways to dispute a will are to argue that a person lacked capacity to make changes to their estate, such as if they suffered from dementia, or if a person was subjected to Undue Influence, such as if a caregiver pressuring them to sign a document...
Wendy Morton: I'll never forget chaotic vote that sank Liz Truss
... Mr Hoyle said while " the atmosphere was tense" there was no evidence " of any bullying or Undue Influence placed on other members"...
No evidence of bullying in fracking vote, Commons speaker says
... Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the atmosphere was " tense" but there was no evidence of " Undue Influence" on MPs...
Amazon workers win battle to form first US union
... " We re evaluating our options, including filing objections based on the inappropriate and Undue Influence by the [National Labor Relations Board]"...
Rethink over crackdown on MPs' second jobs
... " When it came to a cap on earnings, Mr Barclay also had his doubts, writing that such a rule " could serve to prohibit activities which do not bring Undue Influence to bear on the political system" such as writing books...
Carrie Johnson: I'm target of a brutal briefing campaign
... " The reportage that somehow she s got Undue Influence, I don t think that s true, " he told Times Radio...
Rethink over crackdown on MPs' second jobs
Limiting the amount of time MPs spend on second jobs would be " impractical" the government has said.
Boris Johnson called for a review of MPs' outside work Last Year after A Number of high-profile controversies.
At The Time , the Prime Minister backed proposals to place " reasonable limits" on hours spent on other jobs.
But Cabinet Office Minister Steve Barclay has now written to The Commons Standards Committee, saying the measure would not work.
He added such a policy would " not necessarily serve to address recent concerns over paid advocacy and the primary duty of MPs to serve their constituents".
Mr Barclay also questioned whether it would be " fair" to introduce a cap on outside earnings.
The issue of MPs' second jobs came to the fore in 2021 when the then-Conservative MP Owen Paterson was found to have broken lobbying rules.
It caused chaos in government and accusations of sleaze after No 10 attempted an overhaul of the standards system, which would have stopped Mr Paterson from being suspended from The Commons . He later resigned as an MP.
The furore led to increased scrutiny of The Work MPs do outside of Parliament, with a lot of Focus On former Attorney General Geoffrey Cox , who earned around £900,000 in 2020 through his work as a lawyer.
MPs later backed government plans to prevent them taking on certain jobs, with No 10 saying any outside role, paid or unpaid, should be " within reasonable limits" and not stop MPs fully serving their constituents.
A definition of what that meant was not given, but International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan suggested 15 hours a week as a reasonable limit.
However, in The Letter from Mr Barclay, the government now appears to have moved away from that pledge.
'Impractical'The minister reiterated the government's desire for a ban on MPs providing paid parliamentary advice, consultancy, or strategy services.
But while he acknowledged a Time Limit was considered " necessary" by some, He Said it would be " impractical".
In a submission to the standards committee, Mr Barclay wrote: " It is the government's initial view that the imposition of fixed constraints such as time limits on the amount of time that members can spend on outside work would be impractical.
" The imposition of time limits would not necessarily serve to address recent concerns over paid advocacy and the primary duty of MPs to serve their constituents. "
When it came to a cap on earnings, Mr Barclay also had his doubts, writing that such a rule " could serve to prohibit activities which do not bring Undue Influence to bear on the political system" such as writing books.
He Said a long-serving MP " could inadvertently reach the 'ceiling' through earnings accrued over time" and he questioned " whether it would be fair to subject that member to a standards investigation".
He added: " To avoid this issue would require a substantive earning threshold to be set such that it would not serve to prevent MPs from taking on outside work for which they were properly remunerated In Line with salaries in that sector.
" The introduction of such an arbitrary cap therefore may not have The Intended effect of ensuring that members prioritise their parliamentary duties and the needs of their constituents. "
Source of news: bbc.com