The Independent Expert Panel (IEP) is a body of the British Houses of Parliament. The Panel was established in 2020 in response to a report by Dame Laura Cox, and replaced the Committee on Standards. [1] [2] [3] As recommended in the Cox report, it is entirely independent of Parliament and none of its members are MPs. [4]
The Panel determines the appropriate sanction for Members of Parliament in cases involving bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct, referred to it by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards after investigation by the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme. [4]
It also hears and adjudicates appeals made to it by respondents. [4]
Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz is a British politician who served as the Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester East for 32 years, from 1987 to 2019. He is the UK Parliament's longest-serving British Asian MP.
John Simon Bercow is a British former politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons from 2009 to 2019, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Buckingham between 1997 and 2019. A member of the Conservative Party prior to becoming Speaker, he was the first MP since Selwyn Lloyd in 1971 to be elected Speaker without having been a Deputy Speaker. After resigning as Speaker in 2019 and opting not to seek re-election as MP for Buckingham in the 2019 general election, Bercow left Parliament. In 2021, he joined the Labour Party but was suspended in 2022.
Peter William Bone is a British former politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wellingborough from 2005 until his removal in 2023. A member of the Conservative Party, he had sat as an independent in the House of Commons after the Conservative whip was withdrawn from him in 2023, until he was removed by a recall petition in December of that year. He campaigned for Brexit in the EU referendum and was part of the political advisory board of Leave Means Leave. From July to September 2022, he served as Deputy Leader of the House of Commons.
The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards is an officer of the British House of Commons. The work of the officer is overseen by the Commons Select Committee on Standards.
Christopher John Pincher is a British former politician and member of the Conservative Party who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamworth from 2010 until his resignation in 2023. Pincher served as Government Deputy Chief Whip, and Treasurer of the Household from 2018 to 2019 and from February to June 2022.
The Commons Select Committee on Standards is appointed by the House of Commons to oversee the work of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.
The Recall of MPs Act 2015 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that makes provision for constituents to recall their member of Parliament (MP) and trigger a by-election. It received royal assent on 26 March 2015 after being introduced on 11 September 2014.
Patrick John Grady is a Scottish politician. He was elected at the 2015 UK general election as the Scottish National Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow North. He was re-elected in 2017 and in 2019. Following the dissolution of parliament in advance of the 2024, he is no longer a Member of Parliament.
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani is a British Conservative Party politician and Member of Parliament (MP) for Sussex Weald since 2024, having previously represented Wealden in East Sussex from 2015 until the constituency was abolished in 2024. She has served as Chairman of Ways and Means, the senior Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons since 2024.
Neil Alan John Coyle is a British Labour politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bermondsey and Old Southwark since 2015.
David John Warburton is a British former politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Somerton and Frome from 2015 until his resignation in 2023. On his election in the 2015 general election he represented the Conservative Party, but was suspended from the party in April 2022 pending the outcome of an Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) investigation into allegations, eventually withdrawn, of harassment and class A drug use. Prior to entering politics, he was the founder, chief executive and chairman of Pitch Entertainment Group. On 17 June 2023, Warburton announced his resignation as an MP, triggering a by-election.
Patricia Gibson is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician serving as SNP Attorney General Spokesperson since September 2023. She served as the SNP Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government since 2021 to 2022. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Ayrshire and Arran 2015–2024.
Jared Cain O'Mara is a British convicted fraudster and former Labour politician who was Member of Parliament (MP) for Sheffield Hallam from 2017 to 2019.
A series of allegations concerning the involvement of British politicians in cases of sexual harassment and assault arose in October and November 2017. Allegations were prompted by discussions among junior staff employed in the UK Parliament at Westminster following the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse allegations in Hollywood earlier in October, and the subsequent rise of the #MeToo movement, but spread further to cover all the major political parties, including political figures beyond Westminster.
Robert Joseph Roberts is a British former politician who was Member of Parliament for Delyn from 2019 to 2024.
The Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS) is a scheme set up by the British Houses of Parliament which investigates complaints about inappropriate behaviour, such as bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct, and provides advice to complainants. Any current or former member of the Parliamentary community is able to raise an issue with the ICGS. The scheme operates under the oversight of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.
Dame Naomi Lisa Ellenbogen, Mrs Barklem is a British High Court Judge.
The Chris Pincher scandal was a political controversy in the United Kingdom related to allegations of sexual misconduct by the former Conservative Party Deputy Chief Whip, Chris Pincher. In early July 2022, allegations of Pincher's misconduct emerged, including allegations that pre-dated his appointment as Deputy Chief Whip.
A by-election took place on Thursday 15 February 2024 in the UK Parliament constituency of Wellingborough. This followed a recall petition held in late 2023 that removed the incumbent MP Peter Bone under the terms of the Recall of MPs Act 2015, triggered by his six-week suspension from the House of Commons for bullying and sexual harassment.