Three former Labour MPs and an ex-Tory peer facing expenses fraud allegations have lost appeals over a ruling that they are not protected by parliamentary privilege from prosecution. Elliott Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield had argued at the Court of Appeal that only Parliament could hear their case. And did these men...

Three former Labour MPs and a Conservative peer lost their appeals this morning, over last month’s ruling that they could not avoid trial for alleged expenses fraud by claiming Parliamentary privilege. From the BBC: Elliott Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield had argued at the Court of Appeal that only Parliament could hear their case. The four all deny charges of false accounting over their expenses. The charges carry a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment. The men had appealed against a ruling in June by Mr Justice Saunders sitting at Southwark Crown Court in central London. The judge had rejected arguments that they were protected by parliamentary privilege and should be dealt with by Parliament alone. Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge said, It...

David Chaytor, Elliot Morley, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield are not protected from prosecution by parliamentary privilegeThree former Labour MPs and a Tory peer today lost appeals over a ruling that they are not protected from prosecution by parliamentary privilege over allegations of theft by false accounting.Court of appeal judges rejected challenges brought by David Chaytor, Elliot Morley, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield, who deny the allegiations.The four appealed against a ruling in June by Mr Justice Saunders, sitting at Southwark crown court. He rejected arguments claiming they were protected by parliamentary privilege and should be dealt with by parliament alone.Today, the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, sitting with Lord Neuberger and Sir Anthony May, agreed with the earlier...

The Court Of Appeal Criminal Division COURT 4 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE, QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISIONAL COURT FRIDAY 30th JULY 2010 IN COURT 4 AT 09:15 AM BEFORE LORD CHIEF JUSTICE OF ENGLAND AND WALES PRACTICE DIRECTION: AMENDMENT NO 25 TO THE CONSOLIDATED CRIMINAL PRACTICE DIRECTION (CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS: LISTING CASE MANGEMENT: COSTS IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS) TO FOLLOW FOR HAND DOWN JUDGMENT AT 9:30AM Before LORD CHIEF JUSTICE OF ENGLAND AND WALES MASTER OF THE ROLLS SIR ANTHONY MAY PRESIDENT OF THE QUEENS BENCH DIVISION 201003220 B5 Paul Edward Winston White (Lord Hanningfield) 201003279 B5 James Devine 201003276 B5 David Chaytor 201003274 B5 Elliot Morley They are appealing on the basis of parliamentary privilege – claiming that only parliament not the Courts should deal with...

Former barrister and first black Tory peer charged in relation to allegedly dishonest claims of £11,000 in subsistence costsA Conservative peer is to face prosecution after alleged misconduct over expenses, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.Lord Taylor of Warwick will face six charges of false accounting after being questioned over his part in the expenses controversy that engulfed the Commons last year. Taylor is due to appear before City of Westminster magistrates on 13 August.Taylor, a former barrister who was made the first black Tory peer and has worked as an adviser to Home Office ministers, has been charged in relation to allegedly dishonest claims he made for £11,000 in subsistence costs over a period of a year and a half from around March 2006 to October 2007.Keir Starmer,...

ToryDiary: David Cameron is not short of advice from Fleet Street as he prepares to talk to President Obama about the BP oil spillRupert Matthews on Platform: We did not need a 12-year inquiry to know what happened on Bloody Sunday Parliament: Margaret Thatcher lauded in the maiden speeches of Mike Freer, Louise Bagshawe and Nick Boles (who also had a word or two to say about Quentin Davies)Local Government: Stoke proposes cuts in councillorsThinkTankCentral: "In very poor communities it is not a choice between Asda and an organic greengrocer, it is a choice between the fast-food outlet and tinned meals from the corner shop."International: The Economist attacks Republicans as "fratricidal, increasingly extreme on many issues and woefully short of ideas"WATCH: David Cameron says "Come on...

Three ex-Labour MPs and a Tory peer accused of expenses fraud 'not entitled to claim immunity from prosecution'Three former Labour MPs and a Conservative peer are set to stand trial over expenses fraud allegations after a judge ruled today that parliamentary privilege did not protect them from prosecution.Mr Justice Saunders said he could see "no logical, practical or moral justification for a claim for expenses being covered by privilege" and "no legal justification for it either".Rejecting arguments by the four men that they should be dealt with by parliament, he said: "In my judgment, the conduct alleged against these defendants is not covered by parliamentary privilege and is triable in the crown court."Saunders granted the defendants – David Chaytor, 60, Elliot Morley, 57, and Jim...

Remember those three MPs on trial? Everything seems to have gone a bit quiet about them until today. Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield’s attempt to use Parliamentary Privilege in their defence has been thrown out, although this is still subject to an appeal. The judge has ruled their attempt to use the legislation stopping the court from wading into the business of Parliament was not acceptable as criminal activity seems to have taken place. This issue is not going to go away – after the appeal process it is unlikely the trials we begin at this rate until next year. Tagged: Snouts in the Trough...

A judge has ruled that three former Labour MPs and a Conservative peer may not avoid trial for expenses fraud, rejecting their claims to parliamentary privilege. Parliamentary privilege is a 300-year-old immunity from legal proceedings arising from actions within Parliament; however the judge ruled that individual expense claims are “not covered by parliamentary privilege and… triable in Crown Court”. From the BBC: Mr Justice Saunders rejected arguments by Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield that only Parliament could hear their case. There was no bar to a trial, he said. The four, who all deny charges of false accounting over their expenses, are to appeal against the decision. If found guilty of charges brought under the Theft Act, they...

Three former Labour MPs and a Tory peer must face a criminal trial as judge rejects claim of parliamentary privilegeThree former Labour MPs and a peer are not protected from prosecution by parliamentary privilege, a judge ruled today.The decision by Mr Justice Saunders means David Chaytor, Elliot Morley, and Jim Devine – and the Tory peer Lord Hanningfield – will all stand trial for theft by false accounting at a criminal court.Sitting at Southwark crown court, the judge said the argument that submitting an expenses form was part of the proceedings of parliament, and therefore protected by privilege, was akin to saying that the coin used in a slot machine was part of its machinery."The decision that I have had to make has not been easy," he said."If the question of parliamentary...

A judge has just ruled that Parliamentary privilege will not prevent  Jim Devine, Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Lord Hanningfield from facing trial in court over this expenses abuses in court. The defence was being used by the three former MPs to try and keep it within the Parliamentary disciplinary structure. But the judge has rules that their case of false accounting has been...

I managed to find a picture of the portly middle aged Lord Hanningfield with his hand in his own pocket for a change. I wouldn’t want to be accused of interfering with the course of justice since his trial, and that of David Chaytor, Jim Devine, and Elliot Morley, started at Southwark Crown Court last...

It is alleged that Barnsley Central MP falsely claimed more than £20,000 over three years for his second homeEric Illsley, the Labour MP for Barnsley Central, has become the latest member of parliament to be charged over his expenses claims, it emerged today.Illsley is accused of three counts of false accounting and will appear at City of Westminster magistrates' court on 17 June.It is alleged that he falsely claimed more than £20,000 over three years for expenses on his second home in London.The director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer QC, said that there was "sufficient evidence" to charge the MP, adding that it was "in the public interest to bring criminal charges".Starmer said: "Mr Illsley faces three charges under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 for false accounting."The...

Legal groups say it is up to the court and not the prime minister whether or not the MPs will have to repay costsLabour MPs awarded legal aid to fund their court battle against charges of expenses fraud will have to pay the money back, Gordon Brown said today – but there was doubt as to whether his claim was legally credible.Almost as soon as Brown reassured the public that the MPs would be forced to repay their legal aid, the Legal Services Commission (LSC) pointed out that the decision over costs would be taken by the trial judge, and the politicians would not necessarily be made to repay the amount in full.The disclosure yesterday that David Chaytor, Elliot Morley and Jim Devine would receive legal aid was denounced as a "complete outrage" by Tory leader David Cameron, who promised a...

David Chaytor, Elliot Morley and Jim Devine are accused of stealing almost £60,000 in allowances through false mortgage claims, rent claims and invoiced services. Well after doing their best as MP's to line their own pockets with our hard earned, as well as voting to keep us from finding out that they were doing that; an now that that has failed they now face the justice system. Having claimed that they are are somehow special and should not be tried like common crooks and as MP's are exempt from the laws that apply to us little folk. Thankfully that little ruse failed and now having hired their expensive legal chaps to defend them, they wait for this you will love it. They are getting legal fucking aid to help with the costs! Sure everyone is entitled to legal representation,...

I just cannot believe the audacity of Livingston's Jim Devine, Scunthorpe's Elliot Morley and Bury North's David Chaytor. Not only are they still saying that their fraudulent accounting on their expenses is above the law of the land but on their salaries they will be claiming legal aid to take the hearing through the magistrates court about why they shouldn't be tried in a court in what...

Scotland Yard gives new folder of evidence to Crown Prosecution ServiceScotland Yard passed a new file of evidence against a parliamentarian suspected of abusing expenses to prosecutors today.A Metropolitan police spokesman confirmed the dossier was handed to the Crown Prosecution Service.He said: "One further file of evidence relating to parliamentary expenses has been delivered today to the Crown Prosecution Service."The file was the eighth to be completed and sent to prosecutors by detectives at the Metropolitan police's specialist crime wing.Police and prosecutors declined to confirm the identity of the politician who is the subject of the file.A Metropolitan police spokesman said: "This file will now be subject to CPS consideration on whether there should be any charges."This brings...

File is seventh to be passed to Crown Prosecution Service by police regarding expensesA new file of evidence against a parliamentarian suspected of abusing expenses was passed to prosecutors today, Scotland Yard said.The file is the seventh to be submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service by police investigating the abuse of parliamentary expenses.Elliot Morley, the MP for Scunthorpe, David Chaytor, who represents Bury North, and Livingston MP Jim Devine, along with Conservative peer Lord Hanningfield, have been charged with theft by false accounting and appeared in court last week.A Metropolitan police spokesman said: "One further file of evidence relating to parliamentary expenses was delivered to the CPS this afternoon. This file will now be subject to CPS consideration on whether...

Welcome to Friday – and Lib Dem Voice is already in Birmingham for the Liberal Democrats Spring Conference 2010. If you’re coming too, make sure you join us for the Lib Dem Voice fringe meeting: I’ll be chairing the discussion on how to Make authoritarian MPs pay at the ballot box, and we’ll be unveiling our new website which will help to do just that. 2 Must-Read Blog Posts What are other Liberal Democrat bloggers saying? Here are two posts that caught my eye from the Liberal Democrat Blogs aggregator: A bizarre political injury Jeremy Rowe vs the radio. Old-Fashioned Politics Helen Flynn hits the streets – and finds inspiration. Spotted any other great posts in the last day from blogs that aren’t on the aggregator? Do post up a comment sharing...

In the UK yesterday 3 New Labour MP’s and an opposition Conservative member of the House of Lords insisted that they should not be tried in the courts when they appeared before a judge on charges of expenses fraud. Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield said the allegations against them should be considered by parliamentary authorities instead of a jury. They said they were protected from criminal prosecution by the right of parliamentary privilege, dating back to the Bill of Rights of 1689. The MPs also asked to be spared the humiliation of being forced to stand in the dock at the City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court. Their request was denied and they then pleaded not guilty. Now regardless of their guilt or innocence, which doubtless will be...

Although charged at Westminster magistrates' court with claiming a combined total of almost £60,000 in fraudulent expenses, they insisted the courts had no jurisdiction over them. Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine argued that, under the 321-year-old Bill of Rights, they could be judged only by the House of Commons. "When they emerged after the brief hearing, they were taunted again with cries of 'pigs' and 'oink, oink'. As they left in a taxi, one shouted: 'Don't forget to get a receipt.' Here is hoping that all they get are long jail terms, huge fines and plenty of man on man action when in...

The treatment in court of the three MPs charged with fiddling their expenses claims was not what they are used toFor the three MPs charged with fiddling their expenses claims, it may have been the unkindest moment. Their brief, Julian Knowles, wearing one of those vast chalk-stripe suits that possibly only lawyers may, by law, ever wear, asked the chief magistrate if the trio might be excused sitting in the dock.The chief magistrate, district judge Timothy Workman, said in the mildest and gentlest fashion that it was usual for defendants to sit exactly there. So the MPs, who had plonked themselves on comfy chairs towards the back, had to file into a glass cage in the corner of the court. It looked slightly like the bulletproof conservatory the Israelis built for Adolf Eichmann. A tiny...

Labour MPs and Tory peer plead not guilty and say workings of parliament should be dealt with by parliamentThree Labour MPs and a Conservative peer charged with theft over their expenses claims are to fight to keep their cases out of the criminal courts by attempting to invoke a 320-year-old law protecting them under parliamentary privilege.Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield appeared today at City of Westminster magistrates court to plead not guilty to charges of false accounting under the Theft Act 1968.The cases were committed to Southwark crown court after lawyers argued they raised issues of "high constitutional importance". If convicted, the four face a maximum sentence of seven years' imprisonment.Julian Knowles, representing the three MPs, stressed the...

David Chaytor, Jim Devine, Elliot Morley and Lord Hanningfield say the workings of parliament should be dealt with by parliamentThree Labour MPs and a Conservative peer facing charges over their expenses appeared in court today to argue that their cases should be dealt with by parliament rather than the criminal justice system.Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield answered summonses at City of Westminster magistrates court to be charged with false accounting under the Theft Act.Their cases were referred to Southwark crown court after lawyers for the men said the case was of "high constitutional importance" and they would be arguing their right for it to be heard by parliament.Morley, Chaytor and Devine appeared together in the dock of court No 1 as their lawyer,...

Today is the day that Jim Devine, Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Lord Hanningfield are meant to walk around the corner from the Palace of Westminster to Westminster Magistrates Court to answer charges of false accounting relating to their expenses. I say meant to because Devine was too ill according to his doctor to appear before an employment tribunial yesterday.It comes the day after it...

Harry Cohen MP Tomorrow three Labour MPs will appear in court charged with offences under the Theft Act due to their Parliamentary expenses claims. Elliott Morley, Jim Devine and David Chaytor will appear in Westminster Magistrates Court. They are the first MPs to be charged with offences resulting from last year’s expenses revelations. The fourth MP under investigation is believed to be Eric Ilsley but tonight the Daily Telegraph is reporting that Harry Cohen has become the fifth Labour MP to be the subject of a criminal investigation. Cohen’s offence was reported as “particularly serious” by the House of Commons Standards and Privileges Committee. He was found to have claimed around £70,000 from his second home allowance whilst renting out the home that he...

A footnote to my post about the subsequent expenses revelations regarding the 21 Conservative MPs who voted down expenses reform in 2008, before the Daily Telegraph revelations forced everyone’s hand. Of the three Labour MPs now facing criminal charges, two also voted against reform (David Chaytor and Elliot Morley) whilst the third, Jim Devine, abstained on the vote. Well there you...

The Taxpayers’ Alliance has calculated that the three Labour MPs charged with theft from the taxpayers, Jim Devine, David Chaytor and Elliot Morley, will share between them a pay-off totalling £151,552 come election day.  They will also get generous gold-plated pensions.  This is an outrageous piss-take. Given that they are unlikely to be in Court before election day, the House should pass a resolution that any member facing criminal charges of financial impropriety should have payment of resettlement grants and pensions suspended until the result of the charges are known.  If found guilty they should lose all their pension rights.  They will still be drawing their parliamentary pay every month in any event. This is what would happen to a servicemen or police officer who was...

Nick Clegg and David Cameron, leaders of the Liberal Democrat and Conservative parties respectively, have agreed that the three MPs facing criminal charges over their expenses should not claim privilege as a defence. Cameron said he was disgusted and Clegg that the public would be outraged if Elliot Morely, David Chaytor and Jim Devine used their stated 1689 Bill of Rights defence...

The three Labour MPs who have been charged with theft over fraudulent expense claims have declared that they are above the law and will fight attempts to put them on trial.Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine each face up to seven years in jail after Keir Starmer QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, announced that he was charging them under the Theft Act 1968. Lord Hanningfield, the Tory frontbencher and leader of Essex County Council, faces six charges over his expense claims. In a joint statement, the three MPs announced that they would fight the charges by claiming parliamentary privilege over their expense claims. It said: “We maintain that this is an issue that should be resolved by the parliamentary commissioner, who is there to enforce any breach of the rules.”The...