The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) has referred claims that Pensions Minister, Paul Maynard, broke parliamentary rules by using taxpayer money to fund Conservative Party work to its compliance officer for assessment.

The Sunday Times recently reported on allegations that Maynard had used his constituency office, for which he received parliamentary funding from Ipsa, as the premises of his local Conservative Association as well.

A member of the local Conservative association had reportedly contacted the paper as they were concerned parliamentary rules were being broken and had tried, but failed, to get the Conservative Party to stop what was happening.

Following The Sunday Times story, an Ipsa spokesperson stated: “In light of the additional information provided by the Sunday Times, we will be referring this to the Compliance Officer for Ipsa.”

Commenting in response to the concerns, Maynard said: “I have financial agreements in place with Ipsa over the ad-hoc use of my constituency office by the local Conservative association.

“I believe that these arrangements are appropriate, but will be seeking clarification from Ipsa to ensure this is the case. I will, of course, abide by any findings they make and ensure that any payments deemed necessary can be made promptly”.

Maynard, who was elected as the Conservative MP for Blackpool North and Cleveleys in May 2010, was appointed as Pensions Minister at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in November 2023.

He also previously acted as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Transport and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice.

According to the BBC, Labour Party chairwoman, Anneliese Dodds, said the allegations against the pensions minister were "extremely serious" and "must be thoroughly investigated".

"Rishi Sunak's promise of professionalism, integrity and accountability was in tatters long before these revelations," she said. "We urgently need a general election and change with Labour."

Liberal Democrat deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, also urged Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, to suspend Maynard as a minister and suspend the party whip while the "extremely serious allegations" are investigated.

"These latest allegations are yet another sore reminder of the number of times that senior Conservatives have shown utter contempt for the rules," she said. "The Conservative Party has proven itself completely unfit to be in office. We need a general election now."

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