Geoffrey Cox took SECOND trip to Caribbean while Commons was sitting

16 shares

38

View
comments

Sir Geoffrey Cox was ordered to spend more time in Parliament on Tuesday night – as it emerged he made a second trip to a Caribbean tax haven while the Commons was sitting.

The former attorney general was rebuked by Government Chief Whip Mark Spencer following revelations in today's Daily Mail about his lucrative second job.

The Tory grandee has been advising the government of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), a tax haven accused of corruption.

In a story that stunned Westminster, the Mail revealed that Sir Geoffrey took advantage of lockdown rules to cast votes in the Commons by proxy as he worked 4,000 miles away in the Caribbean during April and May.

A Government source said Mr Spencer had 'reminded him he needs to be physically present in Parliament, representing his constituents'.

Downing Street also distanced itself from Mr Cox, with a No 10 spokesman saying an MP's 'primary job' should be serving their constituents.

But the Mail can reveal that Sir Geoffrey made a second trip to the Caribbean in June as he battled to clear the BVI government in a corruption inquiry launched by the British Foreign Office.

Footage from the inquiry shows that Sir Geoffrey was present in the courtroom where the inquiry was held on the largest of the islands – Tortola – on June 22, when Parliament was sitting in London discussing Covid regulations.

It also emerged on Tuesday that Sir Geoffrey had been forced to declare an interest in 2018 after voting against a tightening of anti-money laundering regulations in tax havens such as the Cayman Islands, where he defended a former premier against corruption charges. Sir Geoffrey has so far declined to respond to repeated requests for comment on the affair.