Ukip politician wins delay in paying compensation to Rotherham MPs in slander and libel case

Mr Justice Warby said he was obliged to grant a “stay” on the proceedings at London’s High Court pending the opinion of the European parliament on the question raised by Jane Collins, who represents Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, of whether she has immunity.The suspension of the litigation on Tuesday came after the judge was informed by officials in Europe that the matter would be dealt with as expeditiously as possible.Ms Collins has been sued for slander and libel by Sir Kevin Barron, MP for Rother Valley, John Healey, who represents Wentworth and Dearne, and Sarah Champion, MP for Rotherham.They have complained about a speech she gave at Ukip’s conference in September 2014 - a month after a report found that about 1,400 children in the area had been abused between 1997 and 2013.A year ago, Mr Justice Warby made findings on meaning - after which Ms Collins, who was legally represented at the time, made an offer of amends which was accepted.The judge said that her words meant, as an allegation of fact, that each of the MPs knew many of the details of the exploitation yet deliberately chose not to intervene but allowed it to continue.They also meant, as expressions of opinion, that they acted in this way for motives of political correctness, political cowardice or political selfishness and that they were guilty of misconduct so grave that it was or should be criminal, as it aided the perpetrators and made the MPs just as culpable.Lawyers for Ms Collins argued that it was a political speech which did not contain any allegation of fact, but expressed an opinion to the effect that the MPs were likely to have known that sexual exploitation was a serious problem in the area.The amount of compensation could not be agreed so the case came back to court this week for the assessment of damages - which the MPs say should be around £150,000 each.But, Ms Collins, who is now acting in person, applied to set the agreement aside, claiming she did not give informed consent and there was no proper acceptance.She said she was under the impression that her lawyers were going to robustly contest the claim and there were defences available.Gavin Millar, QC for the MPs, said: “It is simply an attempt to get out of the bargain she made and yet another example of her inability to accept the consequences of her own actions.”He told the judge: “They have a right to finality and the conclusion of their proceedings in a reasonable time.”The judge, who reserved his ruling on the application until matters in Europe are resolved, ordered Ms Collins to pay £15,000 on account of costs.ends