However, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards made comments in the Jacqui Smith case that may be relevant for the 'local' MPs. :"Mr Lyon concluded that between June 28, 2007, and March 31, 2009, she spent more nights at her Redditch home than the London property.He added: “Ms Smith did not give sufficient weight either to the objective overnights test or to the need to consider whether she was an exception to the rule.” He added that this is “not in accordance with the rules of the House at the time.”He continued: “In my judgement, Ms Smith misdirected herself by focusing on the nature and location of her job (where she spent her long working day) and not the nature and location of her overnight accommodation (where she went whenever her working life allowed).“As a result, Ms Smith reached a mistaken interpretation of her the term 'main home' which, on any objective view, did not fit her personal circumstances and which was therefore contrary to the purpose as well as to the letter of the rule.”
Tim Henderson ● 6234d