Jacob Rees-Mogg announces government U-turn over sleaze committee after backlash

The government has dramatically ditched plans for a Tory-dominated committee to rewrite House of Commons sleaze rules, and will instead seek cross-party talks on changes.

Jacob Rees-Mogg announced the U-turn in the House of Commons, saying he wanted to “break the link” between reform of standards procedures and the case of former minister Owen Paterson, who dodged a 30-day suspension in Wednesday’s controversial vote.

Mr Paterson is now expected to face a second vote on suspension, potentially exposing him to a by-election challenge.

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