Shamed Labour MP Keith Vaz quits the Commons THREE YEARS after being caught offering to buy cocaine for male sex workers
- MPs approved suspension of Keith Vaz without formal vote last month
- But he was still able to stand and could have avoided punishment if re-elected
- Tonight Vaz said he would not stand and was praised by Jeremy Corbyn
- Vaz ‘expressed willingness’ to buy cocaine with two men at his flat in 2016
Labour’s Keith Vaz, who was facing suspension from the Commons for six months after he was found to have ‘expressed willingness’ to purchase cocaine for others, will not stand at the upcoming General Election, he has announced.
In response to Mr Vaz’s announcement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: ‘Keith Vaz was among the pioneering group of black and Asian Labour MPs elected in 1987. I was proud to support his selection and incredibly proud when he won, taking the seat from the Tories.
‘Keith has made a substantial and significant contribution to public life, both as a constituency MP for the people of Leicester and for the Asian community across the country. He has helped to pave the way for more BAME people to become involved in politics.
‘His work in Parliament has been exemplary, as Britain’s first Asian origin Minister, Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee, a campaigner on diabetes issues, and most recently trying to help the peace process in Yemen.
‘Our work to combat racism and bring our diverse communities together is far from over.’
The Commons Standards Committee recommended Labour MP Keith Vaz should be suspended for six months after he breached the Commons code of conduct ‘by expressing willingness to purchase cocaine for another person’