No 10 has said it is “very concerning” that MPs were reportedly met by sex workers in their hotel rooms and engaged in raucous drinking while on parliamentary trips abroad.
The prime minister’s deputy official spokesperson said the oversight of trips taken by all-party parliamentary groups (APPGs) was a matter for parliament but expressed concern about some of the behaviour reported by Politico and the Times.
“We have seen some of the reports and some of the behaviour reported is clearly very concerning,” he said.
“The prime minister believes MPs should be working hard for the public and the vast majority are focused on trying to solve our shared challenges, whether that be supporting the most vulnerable or working to making our schools better and streets safer.
“The regulation of APPGs is a matter for the House[s of Parliament] and the standards committee is conducting an ongoing inquiry into APPGs. The process around them is a matter for the house rather than government.”
There has been longstanding concern about the operation of APPGs, which often organise fact-finding trips for MPs abroad where there can be hospitality paid for by foreign governments or companies.
The Times reported on Wednesday that some senior government figures are concerned that MPs and peers are engaging in “sex and heavy drinking” on foreign visits, and that incriminating evidence could be used against those who are misbehaving.
An investigation by Politico earlier this month claimed that one former Conservative MP asked where the nearest brothel was when he visited a country in south-east Asia, and that a former minister stayed on after official trips to pursue his “interest in women”.
APPGS are the subject of an inquiry by the Commons standards committee.
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