Exclusive: No further action will be taken against the Leyton and Wanstead MP after he wrote a letter to the standards commissioner about another MP who is currently being investigated for misconduct, reports Marco Marcelline
Leyton and Wanstead MP Calvin Bailey “inadvertently” breached the parliamentary code of conduct when he wrote a letter to the standards commissioner about another MP who is facing a live misconduct investigation.
On 24th September, Bailey wrote to the parliamentary commissioner for standards David Greenberg about the ongoing investigation into the unnamed parliamentarian.
Greenberg immediately referred the letter to the committee on parliamentary standards, whose members have since found it to have breached rule 14 of the code of conduct for members of the house.
The rule states that MPs “must not lobby the commissioner in a manner calculated or intended to influence his consideration of whether a breach of the code of conduct has occurred, or in relation to the imposition of a sanction”.
The Echo understands that Bailey has accepted the committee’s findings, has apologised to the commissioner, and has sought to withdraw his letter.
In its findings, the committee wrote: “We concur, however, with the commissioner’s view that the breach is minor and inadvertent. Mr Bailey’s action, no matter how well intentioned, was muddled and clearly inappropriate. He has learned a lesson and has promised to reflect on how more properly to raise matters in future.”
The members added: “We are unable to publish a full report on his conduct at this stage because the case about which Mr Bailey approached the Commissioner remains unresolved and we would seek not to breach confidentiality in relation to that case or potentially to affect its progress.”
Bailey responded to the findings, saying: “I want to thank the committee for their speedy resolution of this case, and for their recognition that my letter to the commissioner was well-intentioned and only inadvertently breached the rule.
“This judgement is a valuable reminder of the constraints on how parliamentarians can raise concerns about an MP’s conduct and its impact on ourselves, colleagues and our constituents.
“I hope it will be of benefit to all colleagues as a reminder that writing to the commissioner once an investigation has been launched into an incident is seen very differently than doing so beforehand or in other ways. I very much look forward to the full facts of this case being out there for all to see.”
Standards commissioner Greenberg is simultaneously investigating ex-Reform MP James McMurdock over alleged racial abuse against a Sky News journalist.
The sitting independent for South Basildon and East Thurrock is alleged to have posted the single letter “N” under an X/Twitter post that was critical of political correspondent Mhairi Aurora.
In a letter to Greenberg calling for an investigation, Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty accused McMurdock of facilitating an “N Tower” chain where users collaboratively spell out a deeply offensive racial slur across multiple posts or comments.
McMurdock is under investigation for potentially breaching rule eleven of the House of Commons code of conduct.
This rule states: “Members shall never undertake any action which would cause significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons as a whole, or of its members generally.”
Bailey, who served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) for 24 years, has been outspoken against racism and far-right politics since gaining public office.
In his maiden speech, he warned of the rise of right-wing populists like the Reform Party, saying: “Those voices are present in our House and vocal in our politics, and we must challenge them openly to prevent those actors from fostering anger, hate and division within our communities.”
Bailey grew up in South London after moving there from Zambia as a young child. In his youth, he developed a close friendship with the older brother of Stephen Lawrence, and has previously told reporters he was left “shaken and angered” by Stephen’s racist murder.
The former RAF commander has also received an MBE for his work on supporting humanitarian efforts in Haiti and the Philippines, and a US air force medal for resupplying a team that had been hit by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan.
No news is bad news
Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.
The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.
If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.
Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.
Monthly direct debit
Annual direct debit
£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.
More information on supporting us monthly or annually
More Information about donations
