Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Wendy Chamberlain has criticised the Government over their handling of the Owen Paterson saga during her emergency debate and called for an end to sleaze and corruption in politics.
In her speech she said: “Previous Prime Ministers and previous Governments have all had their failings. However, it is a long time since we have seen, not just this stench of sleaze, but the absolute lack of resolve to do anything about it.
“They say a fish rots from the head down. And doesn’t it say it all, that our Prime Minister has not turned up today to answer our questions?
“You can’t help but feel that he thinks the rules just don’t apply to him. Time and again, this Government has refused to properly investigate allegations of sleaze, failed to declare relevant meetings, and tried to rig the system to cover their own backs.
“One of my constituents wrote to me saying, Mr Paterson’s resignation is not the end. It must be the beginning of an uncompromising campaign to end the corruption of our politics. I hope that we can begin that campaign, in this place, today.”