MP STANDS DOWN Tory MP quits party after ‘asking elderly party volunteer for £5k to pay “bad people” who locked him in flat’
A TORY MP accused of misusing campaign funds has quit and won't stand in the next election.
Mark Menzies, 52, was suspended from the party following claims he asked for £5,000 to pay some "bad people" allegedly keeping him prisoner in a flat.
In a statement, Mr Menzies said: "It has been an enormous privilege representing the people of Fylde since 2010, but due to the pressures on myself and my elderly mother, I have decided to resign from the Conservative Party and will not stand at the forthcoming general election.
"This has been a very difficult week for me and I request that my family's privacy is respected."
Lancashire Police said it is reviewing "information" about Mr Menzies after Labour asked for an investigation.
The backbench MP for Fylde in Lancashire allegedly made a late-night call to an elderly local Conservative aide demanding the cash as a matter of “life and death”. That sum - which rose to £6,500 - was transferred by his office manager the next morning before being reimbursed from donor funds.
Separately he was also transferred £14,000 from campaign funds to pay for private medical bills since 2020, The Times reports.
The volunteer who took a late-night phone call from Mr Menzies spoke to the Tory chief whip in January to raise her concerns about his unacceptable behaviour.
Katie Fieldhouse, 78, told The Mirror: "All the things that had happened accumulated in my head."I came to the conclusion that something had to be done about it because I have a great fondness for my constituency.”
A spokeswoman for Chief Whip Simon Hart said after Mr Menzies' suspension: “Following a call with the Chief Whip, Mark Menzies has agreed to relinquish the Conservative whip, pending the outcome of an investigation.”
In a statement to The Times after his suspension, Mr Menzies said: "I strongly dispute the allegations put to me. I have fully complied with all the rules for declarations.
"As there is an investigation ongoing I will not be commenting further."
A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “The Conservative Party has now completed its investigation into whether there was a misuse of Conservative Party Funds.
“The money in question that was sent to Mark Menzies MP was signed off by the two signatories of Fylde Westminster Group.
"This body sits outside of the remit of both the Conservative Party and Fylde Conservative Association.
"Therefore we cannot conclude that there has been a misuse of Conservative Party funds.
"However, we do believe that there has been a pattern of behaviour that falls below the standards expected of MPs and individuals looking after donations to local campaign funds which lie outside the direct jurisdiction of the Conservative Party.
“We will therefore be commencing with retraining individuals across the Party on how to manage these accounts which fall outside of the remit of the Conservative Party and are introducing a Whistleblowing helpline.
“Furthermore, whilst outside of the initial scope of this investigation, there has also been a recommendation that the actions of the MP in question have also potentially breached the Nolan principals of public life.
"This is due to the nature of the allegations made, but also the repetitive nature of these separate allegations.
"These will be reviewed by the Conservative Party’s member governance team.v“We will of course share any information with the Police if they believe it would be helpful to any investigation they decide to undertake.
"Suggestions the Party has not been seriously examining this matter are demonstrably false as we have worked to protect the identities of all those involved whilst the facts could be established."
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