Shent furmer Labour MP Elliot Morley pleadit guiltie yestreen at Southwark Magistrates Court in Sou Lunnon, whaur he wis facin trial on twa fraud chairges anent his claims fur mortgage peyments on expenses. The chairges relates ti peyments o £30,428 at a slump.
Furst electit in 1987, Elliot Morley wis Labour MP fur Scunthorpe fur ower 20 yeir an served in the Whups office. He wis promotit ti Fusheries Meinister in Tony Blairs governament an served in the job fae 1997 ti 2003. He wis gied the post o Meinister fur Environment an Agri-Environment bit leed the governament in the May 2006. He wis than appyntit ti the Privy Council. Morley wisnae a semple uncraftie feigur at didnae ken his sums. He wis pairt o the Labour estaiblishment an kent fine whit wis alloued an whit wisnae.
Fur gaun on fur twa yeir but, Morley yuised Parliamentary expenses fur tae claim mortgage peyments o £800 a month on his saicont hous whan he kent he’d aareddie peyed the mortgage aff. His creiminal activities wis funn out bi the Daily Telegraph whan hit stertit hits investigacion inti MPs’ expenses claims. Morley claimed thousans mair nor the ither MPs at haes been convictit.
Morley, alang wi Labour MPs Jim Devine an David Chaytor gaed ti the Supreme Court fur tae claim immunitie unner pairliamentarie privilege. But the Court dimittit the process an sae Morley an the ithers wis sent fur trial. Speikin at Westminster magistrates court in 2010, the three sayed they “unequivocally and steadfastly maintain their innocence of the charges against them”.
Chaytor was jyled fur 18 month in January efter he admittit the chairges agin him, claims fur £18,350 in fause rent an IT peyments. Last month, Devine wis convictit fur pauchlin £8,385 an gied 16 month in the jyle. Anither Labour MP, Eric Illsley, got a yeir in the jyle in Febuarie fur owerclaiming £14,000.
Elliot’s lawyer, James Sturman QC, tellt Mr Justice Saunders at his client kent he wis facin the jyle an sayed: “We know it is not a question of if but how long.”
Maist observers trews at Morley wull be gied a langer sentence nor the ither MPs. Morley haes been funn guiltie o pauchlin the lairgest amount o siller.
In 2007 Morley votit tae support the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill. The Bill wantit tae gie Pairliament an exemcion fae the Freedom o Informacion Ack an pit the hems o the publick finnin out the expenses claims o MPs. 78 Labour MPs votit in favour. Scots Labour MPs at votit fur the Bill includes Aiberdeen North’s Frank Doran, Ru’glens Thomas McAvoy, Tom Harris representin the Sou Side o Glesga, an David Marshall o Shuttlestoun Eist.
Wurds ye mibbie no ken
shent – disgraced
slump – large amount
at a slump – in total
uncraftie – naive
dimit – dismiss
process – legal suit, legal action
trew – believe