Jeremy Hunt denies Labour claims he lied over BSkyB bid
MPs vote against Labour's Jeremy Hunt inquiry call
(39 minutes later)
Jeremy Hunt has clashed with a Labour MP who accused him of lying to Parliament over his handling of News Corps' takeover bid for BSkyB.
MPs have rejected a Labour call for an inquiry into whether Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt broke ministerial rules in dealing with News Corp's proposed takeover of the broadcaster BSkyB.
The culture secretary told MPs there was a difference between "inadvertently misleading" Parliament and lying.
The motion was defeated by 290 to 252, with Lib Dem MPs ordered to abstain.
Speaker John Bercow rejected Conservative calls to eject Chris Bryant from the Commons.
There were angry scenes in the Commons as Labour's Chris Bryant accused Mr Hunt of lying to Parliament over his relationship with News Corp.
Mr Bryant listed examples - all rejected by the minister - he said showed Mr Hunt had deliberately lied.
Mr Hunt denied the accusation and said all the evidence "vindicated" him.
Conservative Commons leader Sir George Young said he hoped Mr Bryant would withdraw the remarks, saying they "did nothing to enhance the reputation of Parliament". But the Rhonnda MP refused to back down and repeated his allegations.
Labour's motion - beaten by 290 votes to 252 - called for the culture secretary to be referred to Sir Alex Allan, the prime minister's adviser on the ministerial code, to find out whether he had broke the rules.
MPs are now voting on a Labour motion calling for the case to be referred to Sir Alex Allan, the prime minister's adviser on the ministerial code, to find out whether Mr Hunt broke the rules.
'Calculated'
Mr Hunt said in March 2011 that all correspondence relating to the BSkyB bid had been made public, but Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman said information published a year later by the Leveson Inquiry proved this to be wrong.
Mr Hunt said in March 2011 that all correspondence relating to the BSkyB bid had been made public, but Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman said information published a year later by the Leveson Inquiry into media standards had proved this to be wrong.
'Important'
She said there were two issues "at stake" - whether Mr Hunt had misled Parliament and whether he should have taken responsibility for his special adviser, Adam Smith, who resigned over his conduct.
Ms Harman said there were two issues "at stake" - whether Mr Hunt misled Parliament and whether he should have taken responsibility for his special adviser, Adam Smith. On both, there was evidence he had broken the rules, she said.
On both, there was evidence he had broken the rules, she said.
Labour says the dozens of emails and texts released by Leveson prove beyond doubt that Mr Hunt had failed to act in the quasi-judicial way demanded of him when he was given responsibility for the bid, and he should therefore quit.
Labour says dozens of emails and texts released by the Leveson Inquiry into media standards prove beyond doubt that Mr Hunt had failed to act in the "quasi-judicial" way demanded of him when he was given responsibility for the takeover bid for BSkyB, and that should resign.
Shadow immigration minister Chris Bryant listed a string of examples when he said Mr Hunt could have corrected the official record after his initial March 2011 statement but chose not to.
Mr Bryant, the shadow immigration minister, listed examples when he said Mr Hunt could have corrected the official record after his March 2011 statement but had chosen not to, proving he had "deliberately" misled MPs.
This proved the culture secretary had "deliberately" misled MPs, said Mr Bryant, and that he had "calculated to deceive for political advantage". He also suggested Mr Hunt could be investigated by the Financial Services Authority for giving BSkyB advance notice of a Commons statement.
He had "calculated to deceive for political advantage", he added, suggesting Mr Hunt could be investigated by the Financial Services Authority for giving BSkyB advance notice of a Commons statement.
"He was colluding with News Corporation and to deny it again today is yet another way of misleading the House," said the MP.
But Mr Hunt said it was "standard practice" to let companies know in advance if there was a statement being made in Parliament about them - and he firmly rejected any suggestion he had deliberately misled MPs.
Mr Hunt said it was "standard practice" to let companies know in advance if there was a statement being made in Parliament about them - and he firmly rejected any suggestion that he had deliberately misled MPs.
He added: "If, as he said, I had a plan, a grand scheme, that was going to deliver BSkyB to News Corp, why would I say that I am going to ask independent regulators, whose advice I have absolutely no control over... for their opinion and I was going to publish that at the same I time I was going to publish my decision?
"If, as he said, I had a plan, a grand scheme, that was going to deliver BSkyB to News Corp, why would I say that I am going to ask independent regulators, whose advice I have absolutely no control over... for their opinion and I was going to publish that at the same I time I was going to publish my decision?
"The reason I did that is that I was setting aside the views I had prior to the bid taking place and that has been vindicated by every page of his evidence."
"The reason I did that is that I was setting aside the views I had prior to the bid taking place and that has been vindicated by every page of his evidence."
Sir George Young, summing up for the government, said Mr Hunt had "swatted" all of Labour's accusations away "with relish".
Liberal Democrat leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg ordered his MPs to abstain in the vote on Mr Hunt.
Abstain
Prime Minister David Cameron has so far resisted calls to refer Mr Hunt to Sir Alex's office.
Backbench Labour MPs called for Sir Alex to resign, claiming he had not acted impartially and had allowed himself to be used as a political "fig leaf" by the prime minister, after Mr Cameron published a letter saying Sir Alex supported his decision not to launch a probe into Mr Hunt's conduct.
Reading from the letter at prime minister's questions, Mr Cameron said the watchdog had told him there was nothing he could "usefully add" to the inquiries being carried out by the Leveson inquiry into press standards.
Sir Alex can only investigate whether the ministerial code has been broken if the prime minister asks him to.
Mr Cameron also attempted to shrug off the Lib Dems' decision to abstain in the vote which will take place at the end of the debate.
He told MPs at Prime Minister's Questions that he "understands" the motives of his coalition partners and it was just "politics".
Labour leader Ed Miliband said the PM's judgement was "so badly flawed even his own deputy won't support him".
Nick Clegg has told his Lib Dem MPs to "stay away" from Wednesday's vote.
Many in the party are angry that Mr Cameron backed Mr Hunt minutes after he told the Leveson Inquiry he had acted impartially over the takeover bid.
But Mr Clegg in his evidence to the Leveson inquiry, repeated his backing for Mr Hunt, saying the culture secretary had given a "full, good and convincing account" of his handling the BSkyB bid.
Even if all 57 Lib Dems abstain, the motion is likely to fail, as Tory MPs outnumber those on the Labour benches and from other parties.
News Corp dropped its bid to take full control of BSkyB last year, following the revelations of phone hacking at its News of the World newspaper, which was closed down following the scandal.
