Keith Vaz quits as Home Affairs Committee chairman

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Keith Vaz quits as Home Affairs Committee chairman

Labour MP Keith Vaz has stepped down as chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee.
It follows newspaper claims he paid for the services of two male sex workers.
He said: "It is in the best interest of the Home Affairs Select Committee that its important work can be conducted without any distractions whatsoever.
"I am genuinely sorry that recent events make it impossible for this to happen if I remain chair. "

At the weekend, the Sunday Mirror published pictures it said showed Mr Vaz with male sex workers in a flat in north London that he owns. Illegal drugs were mentioned during a secretly recorded conversation.
Another Labour MP will now be elected to replace him, with Conservative MP Tim Loughton taking over as interim chairman.
Speaking after Mr Vaz had informed committee colleagues of his intention to resign, Mr Loughton said a new chairman should be in place in October.
He said Mr Vaz had given a "very frank account of what had happened" and that the committee had accepted his resignation "with sadness".

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-37283328

Really embarrassing episode for the British Indian community who would count Vas as one of their own and previously at least, a role model. It has been front page news for the last two days in England, so is an important topic for discussion.

 

[gani999]

Really embarrassing episode for the British Indian community who would count Vas as one of their own and previously at least, a role model. It has been front page news for the last two days in England, so is an important topic for discussion.

To be honest, I don't think Vaz was as much a role model for the India community as Laxmi Mittal, The Hinduja Brothers, Prof Venki Ramakrishnan, Ghulam Noon, Lord Meghnad Desai, Swaraj Paul or a few others are. At least to me, he seemed a bit like a pompous and insecure buffoon.

Good that he has quit. Once less corrupt person in the establishment.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

To be honest, I don't think Vaz was as much a role model for the India community as Laxmi Mittal, The Hinduja Brothers, Prof Venki Ramakrishnan, Ghulam Noon, Lord Meghnad Desai, Swaraj Paul or a few others are. At least to me, he seemed a bit like a pompous and insecure buffoon.

Good that he has quit. Once less corrupt person in the establishment.

Haven't heard of any of those guys, were they British Indians? Vaz is hugely well known as one of the first Asian MPs who made a name for himself as a local Indian brought up in England.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Labour MP Keith Vaz facing six-month suspension for "willingness" to supply cocaine to male prostitutes <a href="https://t.co/VVBAkzfzZg">https://t.co/VVBAkzfzZg</a></p>— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) <a href="https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1188825082346573824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[KingKhanWC]

A degenerate piece of filth. Should be banned forever. To think this guy was representing Asians but tbh only Indians recently. They will be sad.

 

[Knight_Rider]

Wasn’t he caught red handed spending tax payers money on male escorts?
Still has the cheek to hold a public office after all that.

 

[Bewal Express]

Decorators offering other services KV. Lol

 

[Technics 1210]

What a disgrace, the excuses! 2 men came to decorate the house? Yeah we know with what! )

No arrest, no criminal record, I am surprised he received 6 months suspension, the guy should be expelled from the party, and made an example of! He has definitely let the Indian community down in the Midlands for sure!

 

[imrankhannsu]

I think he got away relatively easily.

If this was a Muslim MP then I think it would have been worse!

 

[the Great Khan]

the only reason Vaz gets elected is because those of an Indian origin vote for him. there is no way anyone other than someone of that origin will win in leicester east. Not a chance. Everybody knows he's dodgy corrupt and all sorts yet will still vote for him because he is labour and of Indian origin.

If Labour want to win that seat all they have to do is appoint a Labour councillor of Indian origin and he is guaranteed to win. Vaz controls all the CLP sub committees and all the area labour committees, His cronies are embedded. Nobody young and dynamic will ever come forward.

He has done nothing for his constituency in the last few decades. other than get a gandhi statue put on belgrave road.

 

[the Great Khan]

What a disgrace, the excuses! 2 men came to decorate the house? Yeah we know with what! )

No arrest, no criminal record, I am surprised he received 6 months suspension, the guy should be expelled from the party, and made an example of! He has definitely let the Indian community down in the Midlands for sure!

they dont care. He will win again.

 

[Technics 1210]

Labour MP Keith Vaz’s suspension over drug and escort scandal may last only three days

Keith Vaz could serve only three days of a recommended six-month suspension because of the impending general election, and will not be disqualified from standing again.

The veteran Labour MP broke the MPs’ code of conduct by showing “disregard for the law” in allegedly offering to buy cocaine for male escorts he had hired in 2016, and by failing to co-operate with the investigation into his behaviour, an inquiry found this week.

The Commons watchdog said that he ought to face a six-month ban from parliament, which must be approved by MPs before it takes effect.

There were fears that he would escape the proposed sanctions altogether because parliament is due to rise for an election next week but it is understood that Jacob Rees-Mogg, leader of the House, has acted to ensure it will come before MPs for their approval tomorrow. There is no mechanism to ensure that Mr Vaz would be suspended for the full six months.

The standards committee has written to Mr Rees-Mogg to urge him to uphold the entirety of Mr Vaz’s suspension when MPs return but the letter acknowledges that he may no longer be leader of the House and that one parliament cannot bind the next.

It is not known if Mr Vaz, who has said that he was admitted to hospital this week, plans to stand again. He was recently reselected in Leicester East and his local party published a supportive statement after the findings against him. A parliamentary source told The Times that Mr Vaz may not have to honour the basic requirement of a suspension — handing in his Westminster pass — because of his apparent illness.

The House of Commons authorities have confirmed that even if his suspension were voted through before parliament is dissolved, it would not prevent him from standing for election. If he opted to stand down, the outcome would still be that he has only faced a three-day ban as a result of his violation of Commons rules.

Separately, Labour’s National Executive Committee, on which Mr Vaz continues to hold a seat, will take a decision next week on whether to restore the whip to Stephen Hepburn, Kelvin Hopkins and Chris Williamson. Mr Hepburn and Mr Hopkins are subject to party investigations for allegations of sexual harassment, which they deny.

Mr Williamson was suspended over comments he made about the party’s handling of antisemitism. He has said he regrets the remarks but that he is determined to clear his name.

Charlie Elphicke, the MP for Dover, is suspended from the Conservatives while he faces criminal charges for sexual assault against two women, which he strenuously denies. The Conservative Party declined to say if they would select a candidate to contest Dover.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/...rt-scandal-may-last-only-three-days-hn7fvbds5

 

[Technics 1210]

they dont care. He will win again.

This is assuming Corbyn allows him to stand for the Labour party.

 

[James]

the only reason Vaz gets elected is because those of an Indian origin vote for him. there is no way anyone other than someone of that origin will win in leicester east. Not a chance. Everybody knows he's dodgy corrupt and all sorts yet will still vote for him because he is labour and of Indian origin.

If Labour want to win that seat all they have to do is appoint a Labour councillor of Indian origin and he is guaranteed to win. Vaz controls all the CLP sub committees and all the area labour committees, His cronies are embedded. Nobody young and dynamic will ever come forward.

He has done nothing for his constituency in the last few decades. other than get a gandhi statue put on belgrave road.

Spot on.

This is the problem in many constituencies up and down the country to be honest.

Institutionalised local relics who chomp on the tasty salary every year, contribute absolutely bog all, and are never seen by the residents, effectively rolling over every time as paper candidates.

 

[Bewal Express]

Just imagine a scenario where he stands and wins, he then can't vote for 6 months and the Tories have a tiny majority or even run a minority govt. Those decorators have painted Labour into a corner.

 

[imrankhannsu]

TBH quite a few MPs from Asian ethnic minority get elected due to their constituency having a large number of voters of the same back ground.

But what I find odd is how Vaz who was a married man with kids became bent .

 

[James]

But what I find odd is how Vaz who was a married man with kids became bent .

Surely he is either bisexual, or was gay all along and married/had kids for appearances, to avoid discrimination.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

I wasn't even aware he was still an MP. No wonder Labour are struggling to win elections if this is the calibre of their representatives.

 

[Bewal Express]

I wasn't even aware he was still an MP. No wonder Labour are struggling to win elections if this is the calibre of their representatives.

Labour have been bend over backwards to help him.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Labour need to kick him out the party, will be a disgrace if they let him stand again in December. Don't really care what orifice someone sticks their danda into (as long as it's consensual) however Vaz has a long history of questionable behaviour and ethics (esp when it comes to financial matters) and every time it just gets ignored by his party and others.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

TBH quite a few MPs from Asian ethnic minority get elected due to their constituency having a large number of voters of the same back ground.

But what I find odd is how Vaz who was a married man with kids became bent .

Loads of gay people get married, have kids etc in an attempt to lead a 'normal' life. It's only quite recently that people have been able to come out as gay and it's really a non issue to society however in the 70s and 80s it would have ended a politicians career before it even started if they openly admitted they were gay. Jeremy Thorpe's case, for example, is an interesting one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Thorpe

 

[imrankhannsu]

Loads of gay people get married, have kids etc in an attempt to lead a 'normal' life. It's only quite recently that people have been able to come out as gay and it's really a non issue to society however in the 70s and 80s it would have ended a politicians career before it even started if they openly admitted they were gay. Jeremy Thorpe's case, for example, is an interesting one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Thorpe

Its a concept hard for me to understand I guess.

 

[imrankhannsu]

Surely he is either bisexual, or was gay all along and married/had kids for appearances, to avoid discrimination.

As he is a politician and a cheat, we will never know the truth either way

 

[Technics 1210]

Loads of gay people get married, have kids etc in an attempt to lead a 'normal' life. It's only quite recently that people have been able to come out as gay and it's really a non issue to society however in the 70s and 80s it would have ended a politicians career before it even started if they openly admitted they were gay. Jeremy Thorpe's case, for example, is an interesting one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Thorpe

Even if politicians come out as gay these days, it will hinder their career. Voters, especially religious, tend to shy away from gay candidates. While there are laws protecting homosexuals, their is no law that prevents voters from exercising their belief at the ballot box.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Labour MP Keith Vaz has announced he will not seek reelection in the upcoming general election after he faced suspension from the House of Commons for six months over allegations he "expressed willingness" purchase cocaine for others</p>— Sky News Breaking (@SkyNewsBreak) <a href="https://twitter.com/SkyNewsBreak/status/1193640083049586689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 10, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Captain caveman]

Alot of people having a go at Keith Vaz, but i always remember him being a voice for asian and black people in the uk. He was especially good at highlighting unjustices to muslims.
I am sad he has been through a difficult period, these last few years, i hope he can put his troubles behind him and get on with his life.

 

[Bewal Express]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Labour MP Keith Vaz has announced he will not seek reelection in the upcoming general election after he faced suspension from the House of Commons for six months over allegations he "expressed willingness" purchase cocaine for others</p>— Sky News Breaking (@SkyNewsBreak) <a href="https://twitter.com/SkyNewsBreak/status/1193640083049586689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 10, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

More time to get in the decorators.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Alot of people having a go at Keith Vaz, but i always remember him being a voice for asian and black people in the uk. He was especially good at highlighting unjustices to muslims.
I am sad he has been through a difficult period, these last few years, i hope he can put his troubles behind him and get on with his life.

Allegations of corruption have followed him for years. There’s no smoke without fire. Don’t care about his bedroom habits however I’m glad he’s gone - hopefully his replacement will have a bit more integrity.

I feel sorry for his wife and kids, not him.

 

[Captain caveman]

Allegations of corruption have followed him for years. There’s no smoke without fire. Don’t care about his bedroom habits however I’m glad he’s gone - hopefully his replacement will have a bit more integrity.

I feel sorry for his wife and kids, not him.

His constituents will know what hes like, i am not from the city he represents, but i have a soft spot for him, as he was one of the first asian mps i had ever seen and he was not a sell out, he used to stand up for asian and black people.
I wish him well.