Boris Johnson proposes ban on MPs working as paid consultants

Boris Johnson has set out plans to ban MPs from working as paid consultants, in the wake of the row over former Tory MP Owen Paterson.

Mr Paterson was found to have used his position to lobby for two firms paying him - reigniting debates over MPs' outside employment.

In a letter to Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the PM said MPs should adopt a ban "as a matter of urgency".

This would stop MPs from "exploiting their positions", he added.

Implementing such a ban would require a formal vote in the House of Commons, which would have to hold a vote to change its rulebook.

Such a move would implement a recommendation originally made in a 2018 report from ethics watchdog the Committee on Standards in Public Life.