MICHELLE Mone, a Tory peer in the House of Lords, is set to take a leave of absence from Westminster’s upper chamber due to her alleged links to a firm awarded millions in PPE contracts.
But what does a leave of absence from the House of Lords involve and could Baroness Mone return after the completion of an investigation into her actions?
What is a leave of absence?
According to parliamentary procedure, members who cannot regularly attend the House of Lords should obtain a “leave of absence”.
Doing so allows members to maintain their right to sit in the House of Lords despite being unable to attend.
However, this will only be granted if it is expected that the Lord will regularly attend after the temporary period of absence is over.
Indeed when applying for a leave of absence a Lord must state that they have a reasonable expectation of being in a position where they can return to the House in the future.
If this is not the case then the peer would be encouraged to retire permanently from sitting in the House of Lords.
Will Michelle Mone return to the House of Lords?
Taking a leave of absence means that Mone will no longer be able to attend sittings of the House, vote on any proceedings and or claim any allowance.
But since a leave of absence is only granted for temporary periods it is likely that Mone believes she will one day be in a position where she can once again attend the House of Lords.
It is likely that this would only occur if she is absolved of any wrongdoing associated with the awarding of PPE contracts to a firm which reportedly paid her £29 million in profits.
Can she be thrown out of the House of Lords?
Yes. The House of Lords (Expulsion and Suspension) Act 2015 allows for the expulsion of peers on the grounds of non-attendance, serious criminal conviction, or the breaching of the House of Lords code of conduct.
Any Lord expelled in this way is, however, still permitted to keep their title.
It was expected the legislation would be used to expel Lord Sewel, who was caught taking cocaine at a party with prostitutes.
However, Lord Sewel resigned before an investigation into his conduct could take place.
