![]() Unlike select committees, there is no formal system for deciding their membership and they usually do not have dedicated staff unless provided by an external body such as a private company or a charity. parliamentary premises for meetings and a special portcullis logo, but are not official parliamentary bodies and are largely unregulated. Parliament in central London | Daniel Leal/AFP via Getty ImagesĪPPGs are allowed to use U.K. It’s boorish behavior.” The Palace of Westminster which houses the U.K. They’re patronizing to fellow politicians, never mind the people around them, the people from and unfortunately waiting staff. MPs “who see themselves as celebrities in their own lunchtime - they drink and behave badly and arrogantly. “There’s been a process of disappointment,” they added.Ī former British parliamentarian said the government of one such territory held “deep frustrations” over the behavior of visiting U.K. Overseas representatives have grown wary of such approaches, one said, and some have resorted to packing MPs’ agendas with as many visits and meetings as possible in order to reduce “free time” for potential misbehavior. MPs’ relations with British overseas territories were raised repeatedly, with local officials telling POLITICO some MPs had taken part in parties organized by diplomatic representatives at which young men and women were “supplied” for the purpose of engaging in sexual activities.Ĭertain MPs were often proactive in asking foreign governments for a full, expenses-paid trip overseas, the same local officials said, sometimes going as far as floating their preferences for champagne and large meals. Numerous MPs claimed that while some colleagues were quietly pursuing a genuine and valid interest in relations with these countries, others treated the trips as “a jolly” for essentially recreational purposes. ![]() and overseas who verified claims of drunken, lewd or sexual misbehavior by certain MPs and peers on such trips. ![]() ![]() These groups’ focus on foreign countries mean they tend to make regular trips abroad, funded by overseas governments or private companies and often on parliamentary time.Īs part of an ongoing investigation, POLITICO spoke to more than a dozen government officials and lawmakers in the U.K. The groups are subject to less stringent rules than the House of Commons’ better-known select committees, but are still able to use parliamentary premises for their meetings. Particular concerns have been raised over the activities of “country APPGs” - backbench cross-party groups made up of MPs and peers with a focus on a single country or a group of countries. A senior Labour MP displayed a fondness for “Russian girls” during trips overseas, according to a foreign diplomat, who said local officials felt powerless to intervene because they worried about preserving their influence in Westminster. ![]()
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