Tory MPs were having a ball on a cricket jolly to Corfu while the Commons discussed evacuating Brits from civil war-ravaged Sudan.
They visited for a tournament to mark the 200th anniversary of the sport being introduced to Greece – where it was first played on the island of Corfu while it was under British rule.
Parliamentary registers show eight Conservative MPs and two Tory peers jetted out last month. At least four of the MPs were still abroad when Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell made a Commons statement on April 24 about Sudan after fighting broke out. Shadow Minister for Africa Lyn Brown told MPs: “The Government should be evacuating as many British nationals as possible, as quickly as possible.”
The Commons was also sitting on April 20 and 25 and documents show that MPs Nigel Adams, Aaron Bell, Crispin Blunt and James Daly went to Corfu from April 20 to 25. Mr Daly and Mr Bell took their wives along, too.
Energy Minister Graham Stuart was registered as being on the trip from April 20-25 but his assistant said he was at a London event on April 24.
Minister for Disabled People Tom Pursglove went from April 20-23, and MPs James Wild and Dr Neil Hudson April 20-24. Mr Pursglove and Mr Wild spoke in Parliament on April 24.
Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton and Baroness Evans of Bowes Park – married to Mr Wild – were the peers who joined the group. MPs registered contributions toward accommodation and flights totalling over £7,000 from the Lords and Commons All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cricket and wholesaler Awan Marketing plc.
The MPs and peers were contacted for comment and the Conservative Party declined to comment.
Ministers were also among cricket-loving Tories who accepted a freebie to Jamaica worth over £15,000.
Five Tory MPs were treated by the Jamaica Tourist Board from August 1 to 8 last year as part of a Lords and Commons cricket delegation marking the 60th anniversary of the country’s independence from the UK. Three also had plus-ones.
In total, the MPs registered benefiting from £15,803 of travel and accommodation. They included Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Chris Heaton-Harris, Minister for Disabled People Tom Pursglove and Energy Minister Graham Stuart. Ex-ministers Nigel Adams and Dame Caroline Dinenage also joined them.
A Tory spokesman said: “These trips were registered appropriately by each member.”
Jamaica Tourist Board’s Elizabeth Fox said it met all costs, “including flights and accommodation”.
