Tory MP faces suspension from House of Commons over improper lobbying investigation

A senior Tory MP faces suspension from the House of Commons after an investigation was launched into claims he broke lobbying rules during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Telegraph revealed earlier this month that Steve Brine, chairman of the health and social care select committee, lobbied the chief executive of the NHS and ministers on behalf of a firm paying him £1,600 a month for “strategic advice”.

Leaked WhatsApp messages showed Mr Brine told Michael Gove in February 2021 that he had been “trying for months” to convince the NHS to hire anaesthetists through Remedium, a recruitment firm.

He said he had contacted Lord Stevens, then the chief executive of NHS England, and the Department of Health and Social Care.

Now he faces an investigation by Daniel Greenberg, the parliamentary standards commissioner, into whether he had broken rules over “paid advocacy” and “declaration of an interest”.

Mr Brine’s declarations to the MPs’ register of financial interests show he was paid £1,600 a month by Remedium between July 2020 and December 2021.

The parliamentary code of conduct says MPs cannot lobby ministers on behalf of organisations they have been paid by within six months.