Cash for Questions Undercover Panorama

language and some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting. Does it

say Fiji anywhere in this? This is the moment that prompted the

downfall of a senior Conservative MP and sparked a major lobbying

scandal. You had better check it. Yeah. Patrick Mercer is about to

sign a contract. He is agreeing to lobby for business interests in a

country run by a military dictatorship. Strike it out.The MP

thinks that signing the contract could earn him �24,000 a year.

find this with pleasure and I have to say, thank you, it is a generous

offer. Cash for questions is back to haunt Parliament. Ella Bobbin I have

done a whole series of questions, which I can show you, they are stuck

in my office. I will put them in unless you want to see them

beforehand. Three years ago David Cameron promised to bring lobbying

under control. It is the next big scandal waiting to happen. I am

talking about lobbying. But the law he pledged never materialised and

our fake lobbying company is open for business in Westminster. It is

Daniel Mann, working for Alistair Andrews Communications. The MP on

our books has promised us a Westminster pass, debates and even

put through a Commons motion that we wrote. And he set up the

Parliamentary Committee for us, saying he will arrange for its

report to go to the top. You will meet the Foreign Secretary. What are

you going to do about it? lobbying scandal has extended to the

House of Lords. Two members have been suspended from their party.

Lord Laird, I am Daniel. And this lord has resigned his party's whip,

after telling us how he would tempt other members to join our committee

with the prospect of free trips to the South Seas. I haven't said this

but it is a bribe. It all goes to show how easy it still is to win

parliamentary friends and buy influence in Westminster. In the

context of the expenses scandal, other scandals in Parliament, we are

-- where trust in politicians is that a very low level, this really

is a deeply shocking breach of the than 20 years but for the past three

months I have been posing as a lobbyist, called Daniel Mann.

Lobbyists are paid to try and influence political decisions at

Westminster. I want to see how far lobbyists with money to spend can

infiltrate Parliament, trying to get MPs and peers to bend the rules.

Four years ago the reputation of Westminster was sent into freefall.

More embarrassing renovation -- revelations over parliamentary

expenses. David Cameron reads the riot act to MPs. After expenses,

there are constant concerns about the source of fresh parliamentary

scandal and lobbying is one. It is the next big scandal waiting to

happen. I am talking about lobbying. It is arouses people's worst fears

and suspicions about how our political system works, so we must

be the party that sorts this out. It is the next big scandal waiting to

happen... But this speech is three years old but nothing has been

sorted. What we should all be concerned about is the way that big,

corporate lobbying has managed to get its tentacles into the

Westminster system and I might -- and I am afraid to say I think there

are big corporate interests that have too much influence that is

unseen and that we are not aware off. Lobbying remains a serious

issue. Some of the Prime Minister's most senior colleagues have run into

trouble because of lobbyists. Parliamentary rules governing MP --

MPs' conduct were tightened following the original cash for

questions scandal involving MPs like Neil Hamilton. That was in the

1990s. I want to see how easy it is now to get MPs and Lords to break

strict rules governing payments. Members of Parliament under the Code

of Conduct can take consultancies, or money for giving advice and

assisting people in terms of how the Parliamentary process works, but

they cannot take money for actually carrying out their parliamentary

duties, for which of course they are paid a salary. Payments received

must be listed in the Parliamentary register. Any relevant interest must

be declared in connection with parliamentary motions, debates or

questions. To really understand this business, I need to do it from the

inside. The problem is I have never been a lobbyist. Getting a job as

one is not an option. So I decide the only way to do this is to set up

on my own. I will not get anywhere without a website. It is Daniel

Mann, a worker Alistair Mann it'll -- Alistair Andrews Communications.

Alistair Andrews Communications is my fictitious company's name. The

website only costs several hundred pounds. I wrote the pitch myself.

Our vision is your inspiration. is a shoestring operation claiming

to be based in Australia but with a London office. Alistair Andrews

Communications is a boutique consultancy, that works dynamically

with our clients to solve their problems. What do you think? So

where was a good place to start lobbying Parliament? Well, there are

informal committees set up by MPs and peers, which are vulnerable to

lobbyists. They are known as all-party parliamentary group is, or

APPGs and lobbyists are allowed to fund their activities, sit on the

meetings and even helped organise their influential reports. I am just

going to Google APPG and you can immediately see there is an APPG for

pretty much everything you could think of. The all-party pharmacy

group, Africa, APPG, global health, tuberculosis, they go on, pages and

pages. In all, there are nearly 600 of these groups in Parliament. There

is even one for the BBC. While some of these groups may be genuinely

useful, the influence of others is causing concern. I think the problem

is that we sometimes look at all-party parliamentary group sand

we think that they are something legitimate, but actually it turns

out they are not really all they appear to be. They are often little

more than front organisations for big corporate interests. Last year,

the speakers of both Houses ordered an enquiry into their growth and

practices. It concluded that there were too many and that MPs should

think carefully about the number they sign up to. Sorry to bother

you, I wanted to ask you... Some MPs have got rather a lot. I just wanted

to ask how you manage to fit those around the rest of your

parliamentary duties? I have spoken to two MPs who between them sit on

more than 200 all-party groups. One compared it to liking something on

Facebook. The other said, he was proud of what he had achieved on his

committees. Thank you very much, thank you for your time. Many

all-party groups do serve important functions and are run by MPs and

Lords for selfless reasons but questions remain. I can't believe

that an MP could have more than maybe five, six, ten interests. When

you hear of MPs having over 100 groups come you have to question

whether they have any interest in those subjects at all. All-party

group activities, which lobbyists and commercial interests are allowed

to pay for, include receptions like this one, for the East Asian

business APPG. With so many groups, do we know enough about what they

all do? I think it's very important in any democratic system that we

know who are the main influences on our politicians, so that people out

there can say, oh, yes, we know that that particular industry has been

going in to see the minister, that it isn't all behind closed doors.

have been told that lobbyists' influence on APPGs has become so

great they have even persuaded some MPs to start these groups on their

behalf. So I am going to try to get one started myself. First, I need a

cover story. A fictional client, whose interests I can pretend to

represent. So I have invented one in a place that needs a big helping

hand. It might be attractive to MPs. Fiji. The welcome here is friendly.

And the entertainment, pretty destination, it is also pretty

quiet. In fact, I can't remember having so much beach to myself.

There is a good reason for this. The military jump to that runs Fiji and

its terrible human rights record. The Army has been in charge here

since toppling the democratic government in 2006. Army chief Frank

Bainimarama became Prime Minister. And as a result, Fiji was suspended

from the Commonwealth. I have seen the nice side of Fiji, that every

tourist sees, but what about the dark side? I'm entering loud joker

now, the sugar capital of Fiji. Here, I'm going to meet the head of

the trades union movement who is going to tell me a different story

about modern-day Fiji. The effect that Frank Bainimarama has had in

Fiji has been mainly negative. It has totally destroyed all semblance

of democracy. What we see is a total dictatorship in Fiji. One casualties

has been Fiji's main industry, sugar. The suspension from the

Commonwealth and intimidation of farmers has led to a collapse in

production but those that criticise the Army for this, or anything else,

pay have it -- pay a heavy penalty. I was pulled into a room by senior

officers and then they beat me up. They punched me, they kicked me,

they abused me. I was warned that I would have to keep shut, if not my

life would be in danger. The only good news of the government is

promising to restore democracy. Frank Bainimarama and his team would

like to see Fiji allowed back into the Commonwealth, but he also

understands that that is not possible until such time we have

free and fair elections. Fiji is not a happy story but it has given me

the perfect vehicle to get Alistair Andrews Communications into

business. There is already a friends of Fiji, so I am going to be working

on behalf of the newlyformed Society of Friends of Fiji. An association

of businesses I have invented that once Fiji back in the Commonwealth.

We seek to promote investment in Fiji, not only in regard to our

flourishing tourism trade but also bike pointing to the plethora of

other businesses spreading across our islands. It is not for profit.

It is also not for real. But who can I deliver my sales pitch to? I spent

months studying MPs and peers who have extensive links to lobbyists or

consultancy interests. We rang seven. It is Daniel Mann, you may be

expecting a call. A member of the House of Lords says he is interested

but then goes away on a trip. A strategic communications company.

One MP asks his researcher to follow up our enquiry. An organisation

called the Society of Friends of Fiji. Another MP hangs up after 15

seconds because he too busy to listen goodbye. But one MP does take

my call. Could I speak to Patrick Mercer please? Who is that, please?

My main aim is Daniel Mann, calling from Alistair Andrews. It is Patrick

Mercer speaking. How can I help? Patrick Mercer is the Conservative

MP for Newark. I put to the idea of him -- I put him the idea of setting

up an all-party parliamentary group on behalf of the Society of Friends

of Fiji. One of the things we are keen to do is to set up an all-party

parliamentary group of Fiji, there is not won at the moment. He agrees

to meet me but not in his office. can meet and talk, if we may full

stop it is probably better, if you appreciate there is any commercial

evidence, there will be, then we must not meet on Parliamentary

accepted my story. I decide to find out a bit more about him. We have

seen several different groups operating in this country. I found

footage of him at Sandhurst from an old Panorama. People outside this

country will be glad to see insurgency breaking out. It is the

start of a glittering military career for the young officer. Mr

Mercer marched in step 425 years, serving nine tours of Northern and

another in Bosnia. The highly decorated colonel left the parade

ground for politics, becoming the MP for Newark, a predominantly rural

seat in the East Midlands. Patrick Mercer was first elected in 2001. He

has been re-elected twice since. What do you do? Nothing.Why aren't

you in the Army? Ack in London, Mr Mercer wants to meet me. I am

testing the secret camera on my way to the room I have hired especially,

just around the corner from the House of Commons. St James's Park,

on the left. I have just gone past the Foreign Office. That is the

Treasury, on my left. Just to the right is the back of our office. I

am ready for my first meeting with pitch to the MP for Newark. I

explain just how badly Fiji has been affected by its suspension from the

Commonwealth. I don't know how much homework you

managed to do, but the economy is is no expert. But that does not

my approach with caution. The rules say MPs can take on paid

consultancy, as long as they are not being paid for the work they do as

an elected member. I think members of Parliament should have outside

interests. But they need to be very careful that they do not cross the

line between what they should be doing as a member of Parliament and

what they are doing to gain some extra income. While he has admitted

knowing very little about Fiji, Mr Mercer is quick to come up with

reasons why he might be useful to my Fiji, is a sugar producer. It is

home to a British Sugar factory. As Fiji is a rival sugar producer, Mr

Mercer can see why his constituents potential conflict of interests. But

he is trying to find a solution. is helpful for me to have a foot

in... Not the enemy camp, but my competitor's camp, outside the

constituency. From my point of view, I am interested to see what sugar

production is like in Fiji. Directly, it is unhelpful to my

constituency. It doesn't mean I will be objective to it, I would prefer

to see it flourish in a controlled way. He thinks there is another

reason why he might be an appropriate person to advise my

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reference to G1 problems was to do with Fijian soldier's discipline

problems, which he was interested in exploring, and not personality

making ill judged remarks. Six years ago he caused a storm when he told a

newspaper he had come across a lot of ethnic minority soldiers who were

idle and useless. I was shocked when I read the remarks of Patrick

Mercer. Racism is completely unacceptable. An apology was not

enough to save his frontbench job as David Cameron's security spokesman.

If I have caused such offence, if I have caused concern amongst those

who I commanded, in any way, I regret that. That is why I have

resigned. Yet it seems that he has learned little in the years since

industry in Newark, along with his background, to justify me hiring him

as a consultant. But if he takes the job, she risks breaking the rules.

He is forbidden for taking money for what would be his normal

Parliamentary duties. After our first call, he said he would do some

research. A couple of clicks on the internet and he could have

discovered some disturbing material from Fiji. That is all it takes for

me to find what looks like a torture video. It shows the Fijian police

attacking two escaped prisoners they have recaptured. The beatings last

for several minutes. Their dogs join he seems very interested in our

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be paid directly or indirectly for tabling questions, putting down

motions, speaking in debates or for approaching ministers and civil

rules. Yet he tells me he can arrange a debate in Parliament about

the return of Fiji to the under the contract should not be

linked to his work in Parliament, although I have not actually asked

start up and all party Parliamentary group to promote Fijian business

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to happen. I'm talking about lobbying. It seems it might only

take one MP to get my fake firm up and running at Westminster. Two at

the next X candle... Waiting to happen... Waiting to happen. -- big

scandal. But will he really be able to deliver on his promises? The

coalition pledged a law to increase transparency and show who is

lobbying whom. They failed to introduce it and calls for

regulation have not gone away. Personally, I have been in favour of

a statutory register for a long time. I cannot understand why the

Cabinet Office seems to be completely paralysed in that

respect. A register would have applied to anyone lobbying the House

of Lords, as well as the Commons. There are plenty of lobbyists about.

This man, Lord Laird, has been in public relations for decades. He has

a vast insight into how administration 's work. For years,

this former Northern Ireland MP has had a foot in both camps and knows

his stuff. This is one man that he won shouting from your corner.

has lobbied in the US and Europe. One course he has been shouting up

for in the House of Lords caught my eye. The oil-rich former Soviet

republic of Azerbaijan. Last year, Panorama investigated its appalling

record on human rights abuses and vote rigging. Lord Laird is a big

met our MP for the same time. -- first time. Since 2010, peers have

been banned for being paid for any form of parliamentary advice or

to his client list. He offers advice on how we might further our

fictional Fijian client's interests. His rate of pay? The same as Mr

did, that he would be taking the money for consultancy work and not

for parliamentary lobbying on our nothing improper and has never

contravened the House of Lords' Code of Conduct. Mr Deputy Speaker, this

is a budget for people who aspire to work hard and get on. It is budget

day in Westminster, but Patrick Mercer has other financial matters

on his mind. Feeling his deal with commend it to the House. Within an

hour of the Chancellor sitting down, Patrick Mercer arrives to sign a

contract which could add �24,000 a year to his �66,000 salary as an MP.

It seems it is not just the rain that is bothering. He is less

relaxed today. The MP is concerned that what we are doing will attract

unwelcome scrutiny from political to sign on the dotted line, but

wants to avoid potential criticism lodge with the Parliamentary

authorities a copy of all contracts which depend on their role as an MP.

While crossing out Fiji, Mr Mercer tells me he is not going to hand in

a copy anyway. Instead, it seems to me he is rehearsing a new

justification for working with my firm. He is now simply fascinated by

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on with the job. To get an all-party group up and running, he needs the

agreement of 20 parliamentarians, motion, calling for Fiji's

suspension from the Commonwealth to be listed. Will Mr Mercer submitted

in his name? However he justifies it, doing this will be a flagrant

sound obscure but it is a daily part of parliamentary life. Once

submitted, other MPs can sign up if they agree with its aims. EDMs allow

MPs to bring pressure on ministers and can even spark a full debate in

Patrick Mercer and he has promised that the Early Day Motion, which I

dictated to him, will be up on the web now so let's have a look and see

if it is up today. There we are, look. Fiji and the Commonwealth, EDM

number 100 and 49, that will be ours. Patrick Mercer is the primary

sponsor. He has already got someone else to sign it and it looks pretty

much exactly like what we dictated to him, that this House recognises

that the government of Fiji is making all reasonable efforts to

restore democracy. We wrote that this house recognises that the

governance of Fiji is -- kick Wash is making all reasonable efforts to

restore democracy. Our draft was 63 words long, so how many changes?

Just four tiny tweaks. One of the fundamental rules of parliament is

that members declare their relevant financial interests. From the

outset, Patrick Mercer said he interests in relation to Early Day

Motions could not be clearer. All signatories must declare their

interests when they sign. Mr Mercer has not made a declaration next to

his name to indicate that he has an interest in Fiji. It is the next big

scandal waiting to happen. I am talking about lobbying, waiting to

happen. Waiting to happen... Putting down an Early Day Motion way you

have not declared the interests that you have got a financial interest in

this matter is totally undermining Parliamentary democracy, because

people who are looking at that Early Day Motion and might be influenced

by it, they don't know that your -- that you are actually pursuing a

particular interest. By not declaring his financial links to my

Fijian client, Mr Mercer broke an important rule governing MPs. And

misled those who signed his motion. I have seen it, it looks fantastic,

it is great. I need your bank details, if you could e-mail them to

me. So far, our initial �2000 is buying me an increasing amount of

access, quite literally. He has agreed to give us a Parliamentary

pass that would allow unescorted asp -- access to the Palace of

Westminster. Are you saying that the path, we can't wed get one of the

APPG itself but you can give us one out of Europe -- out of your

personal allocation, is that right? I look forward to that, have a nice

Easter. So would Lord Laird be as helpful? Can he raise issues in the

House of Lords on behalf of my us. I passed this eye-catching

poster most days. This campaign is funded by an Azerbaijani group that

also pays Lord Laird chair of its advisory board. He properly declares

this interest whenever he speaks about Azerbaijan in the Lords. So

will he be as transparent when he talks me through how I might set up

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an all-party parliamentary group for to join. Fiji's reputation as an

island paradise has not escaped his to nothing improper and has never

contravened the House of Lords Code of Conduct. Our MP, Patrick Mercer,

can also see the attractions of Fiji. As he never wants to meet in

Parliament, we are in a nearby hotel instead. It is the first time we

have met since he submitted our which owns a thumbs up from Mr

plans to start the Fiji APPG. And he interest in the group would be good

because he is gloomy about his own party's prospects. He reportedly

once said that David Cameron was asked and most despicable creature,

without any redeeming features and today, he is making some political

Society of Friends of Fiji can get a report published about ending their

country's suspension from the pop -- from the Commonwealth. APPG reports

circulated around Westminster and can be influential. He has wasted no

time getting ours started. He has given me this quite detailed

breakdown of how the report that our APPG is going to be issuing will pan

out and will encompass, even a list of the witnesses that will be called

in to give evidence. People such as Hugo Swire, the Foreign Office

Minister, and the Fijian High Commissioner, various

representatives of the United process to develop.

Can I take it as read that this will conclude something favourable in

terms of the client, in that they been in operation for only a matter

of weeks. For a relatively small sum, we have a gun to get to the

heart of Westminster. -- begun to get to the heart of Westminster. The

MP intends to take our client's campaign to the Foreign &

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work on the report, which would have cost my client �28,000. Its author

made clear the report would be objective and follow best practice.

In Her Majesty 's name, to prorogue this present Parliament...

culmination of my relationship with Mr Mercer comes on the day that

Parliament breaks up ahead the Queen's Speech. It is also the day

that my own attempts to circumvent the Parliamentary processes will

brought along a friend. She is going to be the secretary of the new Fiji

APPG. I am hoping she will get the Parliamentary powers that Patrick

Mercer has already agreed to going to take some time to organise

a pass. And time is running out for Normally, hardly anybody visits my

fake company website. I know, because I can tell the number of

hits it receives. I can also tell where they are coming from. But,

recently, somebody has been clicking on my site. Once I am left alone

with Patrick Mercer, it becomes a dozen phone calls, Patrick Mercer

is finally asking me the right suddenly interrogating me? It seems

a Parliamentary colleague has warned him that I may not be who I say I

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this investigation is about to leave my small office in Westminster,

becoming a full-blown lobbying questions scandal, nearly 20 years

ago, which prompted the most far-reaching political inquiry so

investigating standards in public life... Standards of Parliament

conduct demand public confidence. If they do not, nothing much can go

right. Lord Nolan's seven principles of public life remain at the heart

of Parliament's codes of conduct. But when I approached Lord Laird, he

suggested he could get questions raised in the Lords. And, as he

would be receiving money from my fake company, he would have to do

happen... Patrick Mercer is still willing to do business with me,

remarkable, given his suspicions. It seems, in return for our �2000

monthly fee, he is ready to submit questions. I drafted one on behalf

of the Society of Friends of Fiji, to give to the MP. Fiji's suspension

from the Commonwealth, which is proving detrimental... I had already

raised with him the possibility of submitting questions. Is there any

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back what looks like 15 years, to the cash for questions sort of

situation. I am just surprised that a member of Parliament can act in

this way, even the context we have had over the expenses scandal, the

changes in rules, that he can put such a coach and horses through

those rules in such a casual way. Mercer was as good as his word, and

tabled five questions that later appeared on the official

Parliamentary website. Three days after he sent in the questions, I

paid him another �2000, bringing his total income from the �4000. Our

questions were to ask the Foreign Secretary what discussions his

department had with the Government of Fiji about the status of Fiji in

the Commonwealth, about the effects of its suspension from the

Commonwealth and his policy on the readmission of Fiji to the

Commonwealth. And if he will make a statement. As well as blatantly

breaching the rules by tabling questions for money, Mr Mercer also

failed to declare his financial interest when he submitted them.

And, in an equally serious violation of the code of conduct, there is no

sign on the published register of interests of the �4000 I paid him,

or even a mention of Fiji. Government's legislative programme

will continue to focus on building a stronger economy... This year's

Queen's speech, the latest opportunity for David Cameron to

bring in laws to registered lobbyists. But he didn't. A short

speech and another opportunity missed. My time with Patrick Mercer

MP was coming to an end. As we said goodbye on the steps of my office,

he was comfortable enough to share a habits die hard. He later said his

remarks regarding the Israeli soldier had been misheard. I spoke

to him one more time. The APPG I had set out to form months before was

actually going ahead. He had got around 20 unsuspecting MPs to agree

since said he started the Fiji APPG because of his genuine and

legitimate interest in the re-entry of Fiji to the Commonwealth.

Conservative MP resigns from the Parliamentary party, he is accused

of taking cash for questions. our investigation was made public,

weeks later, Patrick Mercer... is a generous offer. And Lord

Laird... If they want a APPG, they can have one with a bow on it.

quit their parties. For the moment, Mr Mercer will remain a member of

Parliament, although he will be standing down at the next election.

Ultimately, Westminster should have tighter rules. The biggest sanction

would be the electorate being able to sack them and elect a new MP.

activities of two at the Labour peers have also been exposed by the

Sunday Times. Both deny any wrongdoing. All four

parliamentarians caught up in the new sleaze allegations referred

themselves to the Parliamentary Commissioners for standards. The

Speaker announced he is suspending 80 Parliamentary passes connected

with all-party groups. In a sudden about turn, the Government announced

that it would, after all, bring forward a bill to create a statutory

register of lobbyists is as early as next month. But calls still remain

for further sanctions against those who break Parliamentary rules.

our House of Commons, our democracy. Look at the House of Commons. It

belongs to others, the people. And yet various parasitical corporate

interests have managed to weasel their way in there. Two it really

shows there is going to have to be another root and branch examination

of how we can gain ethical standards of the highest order from members of

Fiji were answered within days. A Foreign Office minister replied, it

is not great news for my fictitious client. The Government is still

concerned about the human rights abuses in Fiji. So, what seems