- Rob Roberts MP breached
Parliament 's sexual-harassment policy and lost the Conservative whip. - He was suspended for six weeks from the
House of Commons and now sits as an Independent. - But his letters are still being prepared by a taxpayer-funded research group for Tory MPs.
An MP who lost the Conservative whip after receiving a six-week suspension from the House of Commons for sexually harassing a member of his staff is continuing to receive support from a prominent Conservative research group, Insider can disclose.
Rob Roberts, the MP for Delyn, now sits as an Independent, with his membership of the
Insider has seen correspondence from Roberts to a constituent regarding calls for a public inquiry into the UK government's handling of the coronavirus crisis.
Insider is withholding the name of the constituent and the date of the letter. You can see a partially-redacted version of the letter here:
The wording and structure of Roberts' letter closely matches correspondence sent by two Conservative MPs to their constituents, which Insider has reviewed.
Roberts opens his letter to the constituent by writing: "The Covid-19 outbreak has been one of the most significant and consequential periods of our lifetimes. It has led to a tragic loss of life in this country and around the world and gave rise to previously unthinkable restrictions to our way of life."
This precise wording is also used in correspondence shared on social media by constituents of Felicity Buchan, Conservative MP for Kensington, and Craig Mackinlay, Conservative MP for South Thanet.
A Parliamentary aide confirmed to Insider that these letters follow the format of correspondence prepared by the taxpayer-funded Policy Research Unit (PRU), a research and writing group for Tory MPs on Parliamentary matters.
The PRU prepares non-party political research briefings, daily updates on what's going on in Parliament, and correspondence for Tory MPs to send their constituents on national matters. MPs and their staff may tweak the wording of letters before sending replies to queries from constituents.
On its website, the PRU says it is "independent of any political party and does not engage in, or assist with, party political activities."
But of the PRU's six directors registered on Companies House, three are Tory MPs, and one is a Conservative peer.
Tory MPs subscribe to the PRU through their taxpayer-funded Parliamentary expense accounts, paying the group £3,049 a year.
Roberts, Buchan, and Mackinlay all claimed expenses for an annual subscription to the PRU in May 2020, according to figures published by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. Figures from 2021 have not yet been published.
A former MP who lost the Conservative whip after rebelling told Insider that they continued to receive research and correspondence from the PRU despite losing the whip, due to the contractual arrangement between the MP and the PRU. This person asked to remain anonymous to speak freely, but their identity is known to Insider.
Robert and the PRU did not respond to Insider's request for comment by time of publication.