Denis MacShane must resign as an MP – and do it today

Denis MacShane must step down and allow a by-election in Rotherham. In light of today’s events — with the now former-Labour MP facing a 12 month suspension from the Commons — there is no other reasonable alternative. As party sources have observed, his career as a Labour MP is certainly over. There cannot and should not be any return from this as far as the party is concerned — and the people of Rotherham cannot be expected to spend a year without representation in the Commons.

Regardless of whether (or how long) he is suspended though, MacShane should go if he has any shame. Having been accused by parliament of behaviour “far from what would be acceptable in any walk of life” and which “fell far below the standards of integrity and probity expected of every member of the House” there is no question that his continued presence in parliament is a non-starter.

Allowing this to drag on only prolongs the inevitable and damages the party further. If, as MacShane claimed in a statement on his website, that he is “desperately sorry for any embarrassment I have caused my beloved Labour Party and its leader Ed Miliband” then he should resign from the Commons today, before he makes the situation any worse.