MacShane now facing criminal inquiry

Scotland Yard said yesterday its officers will take another look at the expenses claims of ex-Rotherham MP Denis MacShane after an inquiry by a committee of MPs revealed abuses last year.

Police first began examining Mr MacShane’s expenses in 2010 following a series of allegations of fraudulent claims, but dropped the probe last July. However, four months later, Parliament’s standards committee found he had faked receipts to receive thousands of pounds of public money.

A spokesman for Scotland Yard said yesterday: “We can confirm that following an assessment of the report published by the Standards and Privileges Committee, and following liaison with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Metropolitan Police is reopening the investigation.”

The committee’s report included letters from Mr MacShane to the standards commissioner detailing his actions, which had not previously been seen by police. In one statement he admitted submitting false invoices to claim around £7,500.

However, the Commons authorities have suggested such material would not be admissible in court, as it is protected by parliamentary privilege.

Nonetheless, the criminal inquiry has now been reopened and the CPS must decide whether to press charges.

A CPS spokeswoman said: “On consideration of the report published by the committee, we have looked again at this case.

“We have continued to liaise with the police in relation to this, and have now provided them with further investigative advice.”

Mr MacShane was first elected as the Labour MP for Rotherham in 1994, and rose to the rank of Europe Minister under Tony Blair’s Government.

He resigned as an MP in November 2012 when the standards committee report was published, triggering a snap by-election.