Resignation: Laws pledges to get back to work as MP

The Liberal Democrat stood down as Chief Secretary to the Treasury after he admitted channelling public money in rent to his long-term partner.

Mr Laws said he would now see whether he still had the "confidence" of his constituents in Yeovil, Somerset.

In a statement, he said: "I have paid a high price for trying to keep my sexuality a secret. Losing your privacy, your Cabinet job and your perceived integrity within 48 hours isn't very easy.

"But I accept that I should have been more open and should have set a better example as a public figure.

"I will now need to take a few days to recover from the events of the last week and I then intend to get back to my work as local MP.

"There are many people with far greater problems than I have and they are entitled to expect me to get on with the job which I am paid to do."

He added: "I love my job as local MP, and it is the greatest job and responsibility which I will ever have.

"Over the weeks ahead, I will want to understand whether I still have the confidence of my constituents, without which it would be difficult to continue my work."

It was revealed that between 2004 and 2007, Mr Laws claimed between 700 and 950 a month to sub-let a room in a flat in Kennington, south London, from his partner, lobbyist James Lundie.

Mr Lundie sold the flat for a profit of 193,000 in 2007, buying another house nearby for 510,000.

The MP then began claiming to rent the "second bedroom" in this property. His claims increased to 920 a month. Since 2006, Parliamentary rules have banned MPs from "leasing accommodation from a partner".