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| 'I'm no crook,' says suspended MP | 'I'm no crook,' says suspended MP |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Tory MP Derek Conway has defended parliamentary payments to his son, for which he was censured and suspended, saying: "I am not a crook." | Tory MP Derek Conway has defended parliamentary payments to his son, for which he was censured and suspended, saying: "I am not a crook." |
| A Commons standards committee said there was no record of Freddie, a student, doing work at Westminster in return for £40,000 of taxpayers' money. | A Commons standards committee said there was no record of Freddie, a student, doing work at Westminster in return for £40,000 of taxpayers' money. |
| The MP for Old Bexley and Sidcup told the Mail on Sunday: "I still believe I have done nothing wrong." | The MP for Old Bexley and Sidcup told the Mail on Sunday: "I still believe I have done nothing wrong." |
| Mr Conway said his son travelled from Newcastle to help him with his MP work. | Mr Conway said his son travelled from Newcastle to help him with his MP work. |
| Mr Conway insisted both Freddie, 22, and elder son, Henry 25, who he employed earlier, did the work they were paid for. | Mr Conway insisted both Freddie, 22, and elder son, Henry 25, who he employed earlier, did the work they were paid for. |
| "A lot of students do part-time work. He was working for his father rather than working in McDonald's," he said. | "A lot of students do part-time work. He was working for his father rather than working in McDonald's," he said. |
| Not 'unusual' | |
| "He used to come home frequently. He would go up and down like a fiddler's elbow while he was away. | "He used to come home frequently. He would go up and down like a fiddler's elbow while he was away. |
| "There are MPs who commute greater distances than that on a weekly basis and some are three times Freddie's age. I don't think it was unusual." | "There are MPs who commute greater distances than that on a weekly basis and some are three times Freddie's age. I don't think it was unusual." |
| Lots of MPs have family who work from home Derek Conway | |
| Mr Conway has been suspended from the Commons for 10 days and ordered to return £13,161 of the money he paid his son. | Mr Conway has been suspended from the Commons for 10 days and ordered to return £13,161 of the money he paid his son. |
| He announced he will stand down as an MP at the next General Election, after Tory leader David Cameron withdrew the Conservative whip following the report. | |
| Mr Conway may face a second inquiry into the job he gave Henry, while Scotland Yard are considering a demand for a police probe into allegations of fraud. | |
| The standards committee report, which said Freddie was "all but invisible" at Westminster, concluded the arrangement was "at the least an improper use of parliamentary allowances" and "at worst, a serious diversion of public funds". | |
| 'Homophobic' | |
| Mr Conway said Freddie and Henry worked from the family flat in nearby Victoria, adding: "Lots of MPs have family who work from home." | |
| Outlining the work Henry did, he said: "He'd fillet post, scrutinise e-mails and stuff envelopes. I am one of many MPs who employ family members. It doesn't mean there's not a job to be done or that they weren't doing it." | |
| Mr Conway also denounced as "homophobic" media reports which have referred to Henry's sexuality and rejected allegations he employed another researcher, Michael Pratte, because he was a friend of his sons. | |
| Mr Pratte met Freddie and Henry only after joining his office, he said. | |
| The MP also questioned the motives of some of his parliamentary critics. | |
| "Labour was anxious to take the heat off itself because of pressure on Gordon Brown over Alan Johnson and Peter Hain. This was a golden opportunity - clearly supported by some Tories, some of whom may well have had their own agenda." |