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Aug 2020

Last Updated: 21/08/2020

Politics

Political opponents criticise Ripon MP over £3,000 per hour consultancy

by Tim Flanagan

| 21 Aug, 2020

A government committee has concluded that there is no conflict in Ripon MP and former Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith taking a £3,000 per hour advisory job, but the appointment has brought criticism from political opponents

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Julian Smith, MP for Ripon and Skipton.

Political opponents of Ripon's Conservative MP Julian Smith, have criticised him for accepting a £3,000 per hour advisory role with industrial company Ryse Hydrogen Limited (RHL).

The executive chairman of Ryse is Jo Bamford and in 2019, when Mr Smith was still in post as Northern Ireland Secretary, Mr Bamford, a pioneer in zero emissions power technology for the transport sector, became owner of Ballymena-based bus manufacturer Wrightbus.

Because of his former government role in Northern Ireland, Mr Smith sought advice from the Office of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments about a potential conflict in taking the role with Ryse.

The committee, in a written response from Conservative Life Peer Lord Pickles, concluded that the appointment was not a conflict, as long as Mr Smith does not lobby on behalf of the company or advise on government contracts for two years after he was sacked as Northern Ireland secretary in February this year.

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Councillor Andrew Murday, secretary of the Ripon branch of the Skipton & Ripon Liberal Democrat Association, who stood against Mr Smith in the December 2019 general election, told the Stray Ferret:

"It is very difficult to understand what Jo Bamford's company, Ryse Hydrogen, will get for their £60,000. As far as I know, Julian Smith possess no expertise in the field of hydrogen fuel and parliamentary rules stipulate that he cannot lobby on behalf of the company for a period of two years after leaving office."

Cllr Murday (pictured above, left) pointed out:

"This extraordinary sum, is over twice the average annual wage for 20 hours work."

Green Party Councillor Andrew Brown (pictured above, right) who also stood against Mr Smith at the general election in December, said:

"There is something deeply disturbing about former Ministers being paid large sums of money to offer advice."

He added:

"No matter how many assurances are given or how honest the politician there is a real risk of continuing to undermine public confidence. The thousand plus people of Skipton and Ripon that I spoke to during the recent election were astonishingly cynical about all politicians. I can only see this increasing their lack of faith in the people who are supposed to be working on their behalf."

The Stray Ferret approached Mr Smith for comment, but had received no reply at the time of going to press.

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Political opponents criticise Ripon MP over £3,000 per hour consultancy

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