Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh to apologise for breaching Parliamentary code of conduct
It's after speaking to the media about a Parliamentary standards watchdog investigation
Last updated 7th Sep 2023
The Tory MP Marcus Fysh is having to apologise to Parliament after breaching the MPs code of conduct.
The Yeovil representative spoke to the media over a standards watchdog investigation, however, with a committee has today revealed through a report that they accepted he was trying to be transparent with his remarks.
Fysh was reprimanded after speaking about regarding a now-concluded investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Daniel Greenberg into whether the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Education had committed a rule breach.
The group is chaired by the Yeovil MP.
Back in May, Mr Fysh told the BBC that the matter related to whether the secretarial services provided to the body's committee were correctly registered as benefits.
He also issued a statement to the Somerset Live website.
The Committee on Standards found that in doing so he breached rule 13 of the MPs' code of conduct, which forbids parliamentarians from disclosing details of "any investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards except when required by law to do so, or authorised by the Commissioner".
But the committee, in a report published on Thursday, accepted the view of Mr Greenberg that the Conservative MP was trying to be "open and transparent".
MPs said: "Mr Fysh has apologised for this inadvertent breach to the commissioner and has been co-operative with his investigation and with our inquiry.
"The commissioner was required by the rules to bring this matter to our attention."
Mr Fysh will be required to apologise to the Commons through a letter to the committee.