Keith Vaz carries on with business as usual despite rent boy scandal
KEITH Vaz staged an astonishing public show of defiance today amid growing calls for him to step down following allegations he paid male prostitutes for sex.
The senior Labour MP, who is expected to quit his role as chairman of the Home Affairs Committee tomorrow, emerged for the first time since the sordid claims were made in a Sunday newspaper.
The 59-year-old father-of-two refused to answer questions about the scandal as he left his north London home with wife Maria Fernandes at his side.
He then went to the House of Commons where he quizzed ministers on Government policy as if nothing had happened.
Despite his display of confidence, doubts about Mr Vaz’s political future continued to grow last night.
What Keith does is for Keith and any decisions he wishes to make are for him
The Leicester East MP will meet with the Home Affairs Committee at Westminster tomorrow, where he will formally offer his resignation as chairman.
He is also facing a possible investigation by Commons sleaze watchdogs over his alleged behaviour.
Prime Minister Theresa May today refused to comment directly about the Labour MP’s alleged behaviour.
Keith Vaz avoids reporters outside north London home
But she emphasised the need for voters to have “confidence” in MPs when questioned about the scandal at the G20 Summit of World leaders in China.
“What Keith does is for Keith and any decisions he wishes to make are for him,” Mrs May said.
“But I think overall what people look for is confidence in their politicians.
“I have always been clear throughout my political career that what is important for people is that they feel that they are able to have confidence in their politicians.
“That is what I think we all have a duty to provide for those who elect us.”
Labour MP Chuka Umunna, a member of the Home Affairs Committee, said he would not make up his mind about Mr Vaz’s future as chairman until they had met.
He said: “I think we need to hear from Keith first and we are going to be meeting with him tomorrow.”
Mr Vaz looked drawn and tired as he emerged from his home today with his wife of 23 years.
The couple climbed into a waiting taxi that had been loaded with suitcases.
Later, Mr Vaz took his usual seat on the opposition benches in the Commons for Home Office questions.
MPs listened in complete silence as he welcomed new Home Secretary Amber Rudd to her role at the first parliamentary session since the summer break.
Speaking calmly and without any reference to the scandal engulfing his personal life, he raised the case of a man alleged to have appeared in a propaganda video released by the Islamic State terror group after fleeing Britain in 2014 despite having been arrested six times.
Later, Mr Vaz asked another question during a Commons session about the war in Yemen.
Allegations in a Sunday newspaper claimed that Mr Vaz met two male escorts, both from Eastern Europe, last month at a flat he owns near his family home in north London.
He was said to have posed as a washing machine salesman called “Jim” at the alleged sex party.
A series of text messages allegedly showed that he asked the prostitutes to bring sex enhancing drugs to the party.
He was also alleged to have offered to pay for cocaine for them though insisted he did not want any himself.
Tory MP Andrew Bridgen has said he will write to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards regarding Mr Vaz’s conduct.
Today, the backbencher received a letter from law firm Howard Kennedy accusing him of “maliciously spreading false and highly defamatory scuttlebutt” about Mr Vaz.