Arrogance of fraudster MP

This prosecution is, in many respects, far more serious than the imprisonment last week of his Labour colleague David Chaytor, or the two cases involving ex-MPs, including Elliot Morley, that are currently pending.

This is because Illsley chose not to stand down, or be deselected, when his dishonesty came to light in 2009. Either he assumed that voters in Barnsley Central, one of the country's most deprived constituencies, would tolerate this fraud – or he judged that MPs were above the law. He was wrong and he must now pay the price.

Of course, the veracity of Labour's internal inquiries, when the allegations were first made against the former NUM official, leaves much to be desired. This process, prior to last year's election, was clearly not rigorous enough and, again, raises concerns that the country's political elite did not comprehend the full consequences of the expenses scandal.

Labour's sanctions yesterday were too late – his election candidacy should have been revoked when the police first launched a criminal investigation. This would also have shown that MPs, however experienced, are treated no differently to other people, in both the public and private sector, accused of wrongdoing.

After all, this is a man, placed in a privileged position of trust, who decided that fraudulent claims for council tax, telephone usage and service charges at his second home in London were a legitimate means of supplementing his income, an already generous salary that most of his voters can only dream about. He overlooked the point that MPs had no such legal authority to do so, and act unilaterally without wider consent. He defrauded the people and his position is untenable.

Technically, Illsley can continue '"representing" his constituents until he is sentenced, even though he is bereft of credibility. Even more absurdly, he will still be entitled to sit in the House of Commons unless he is given a prison term in excess of 12 months.

Such a loophole, given the seriousness of the charges, makes a mockery of those politicians who protest that the public are ill-served by the jailing of former or, in this instance, current MPs. It would also be an insult to the people of Barnsley as they come to terms with the coalition's cuts, despite the protestations of Barnsley Central Labour Party yesterday that Illsley remains an "excellent servant". Ignorance, they failed to appreciate, is not a defence.

There is, of course, one way that this scandal can be ended, and that is for Eric Illsley to resign his seat forthwith so voters can – finally – elect a representative that they can trust. The problem is that Illsley appears to be a man with no honour, as shown by his lack of contrition and remorse as the justice system belatedly caught up with his arrogance.