Two Labour Peers suspended from party in wake of “cash for access” sting

The latest “cash for access” scandal has claimed its first Labour victims, with Lords Mackenzie and Cunningham suspended by the party following reports in today’s papers. As the Mail on Sunday reported:

“Lord Laird, Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate and Lord Cunningham were all said to have been secretly filmed offering to become paid advocates for a firm pushing for new laws to benefit its business. According to The Sunday Times, Mackenzie and Laird told how some peers were colluding to hide their conflicts of interest from public scrutiny. They claimed some of their colleagues struck job swapping deals, pulling strings in parliament for each others clients. According to the newspaper, Cunningham asked for £144,000 a year for a personal lobbying service to reporters posing as representatives of a South Korean solar energy company. He reportedly asked an undercover reporter: ‘Are you suggesting £10,000 a month? make that … £12,000 a month. I think we could do a deal on that.'”

The party released a statement this afternoon confirming that both peers have been suspended, saying:

“Lord Cunningham and Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate have been suspended from the Labour Party pending further investigation. The Labour Party expects the highest standards of its representatives and believes that they have a duty to be transparent and accountable at all times.”

Whilst Mackenzie is relatively anonymous in Labour circles (having made his name as a senior police officer) Jack Cunningham is far better known, as a former Cabinet member under Tony Blair in a role that was dubbed “cabinet enforcer” by the media.