Dear Constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about David Cameron and his involvement with the financial services firm Greensill as well as about lobbying more broadly.

I am concerned about what has emerged. Transparency and probity are essential to maintaining the trust of the British people in our democracy. I am glad that the Prime Minister has announced an independent review into the awarding of contracts for supply chain finance in which Greensill specialised. The review will examine how contracts were secured and how businesses engaged with the Government including the role of individuals. It will be led by a senior lawyer, Nigel Boardman.

I do not believe that a Parliamentary inquiry conducted by a new Parliamentary Committee as proposed by the Opposition Party would have been helpful. It would have duplicated work already being undertaken by the Government. The Government is currently undertaking a post-legislative review of Part 1 of the Lobbying Act 2014 in line with the recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Group of States Against Corruption Secretariat and in addition to the independent review by Nigel Boardman.

Existing Parliamentary Committees also have the power to conduct inquiries as they see fit. The Public Accounts and Constitutional Affairs Committee is responsible for examining the quality and standards of administrations in government and the Committee on Standards in Public Life examines conduct across public life. The Treasury Select Committee has already launched an inquiry into Greensill.

I condemn absolutely the sort lobbying that brings Parliament and elected officials into disrepute. It is incumbent on all those in public life to act with integrity and I look forward to the conclusion of the existing reviews in due course.

The Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, more broadly, has found that Mr Cameron's activities did not fall within the criteria that required registration with the Register of Consultant Lobbyists. I understand that Mr Cameron has also issued a separate statement seeking to address his involvement with Greensill.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Yours,

EDWARD LEIGH MP