In April 2023 Benton had the whip removed after he had offered to reporters, posing as investors, that he would lobby ministers in return for payments. A parliamentary investigation concluded that he had breached lobbying rules and recommended a 35-day suspension from the House of Commons, triggering a recall petition. Benton's subsequent resignation as an MP prompted a by-election on 2 May 2024.[2]
Early life and education
Benton was born on 1 July 1987 in Newport, Wales, to Alan and Krystina Benton.[3][4] He grew up in Rastrick, West Yorkshire, and attended Rastrick High School.[5] Benton then studied Theology as an undergraduate at the University of Nottingham and was awarded a first class Bachelor of Arts degree. He later completed a Master of Arts degree in the subject,[4] specialising in the Old Testament.[6] After graduating, Benton worked as a primary school teacher.[7]
In 2015 Benton unsuccessfully proposed a motion that all schools in his council district should sing the national anthem daily and be encouraged to fly the Union Jack.[10][11]
During the election campaign, David Brown, who stood for the Brexit Party against Benton, expressed concerns over his links to the anti-abortion organisation Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), which has campaigned against same-sex marriage and has been accused of homophobia.[16] In response, Benton stated that he was no longer linked to SPUC. He said that he supported their anti-abortion stance but was not homophobic and was a supporter of same-sex marriage.[17]
In November 2020, following complaints to Calderdale Council and the Parliamentary Standards Commission, Benton expressed his intention to give up his council seat as soon as Covid regulations allowed elections to be held, having previously been cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic.[18][19]
Benton's mother Tina Benton was elected in May 2021 to replace him as councillor for the Brighouse ward.[20]
In December 2021 Benton expressed support for the death penalty in certain scenarios.[21]
In January 2021, Benton was found to have broken Parliamentary rules for failing to declare payments he had received for his previous work as a parliamentary researcher for Calder Valley MP Craig Whittaker and as a councillor for Brighouse ward on Calderdale Council within 28 days.[19] When asked about the allegations in November 2020, he cited "an admin error" for failing to declare his income as a councillor.[18] In response to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards' findings, Benton apologised for "inadvertently breaching the rules".[19]
In July 2021, Benton was one of nine MPs from different political parties who had accepted tickets to high-profile sporting events as hospitality from betting and gambling companies. He had received tickets to Royal Ascot, two Euro 2020 football games and Wimbledon.[25]
In April 2023, The Times newspaper filmed Benton appearing to offer to leak confidential information and lobby ministers in return for payments, from a group of undercover journalists posing as gambling industry investors.[26] In response, he referred himself to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards who opened an investigation in the same month. Benton also had his whip suspended pending the results of the investigation. At the time he was also the chairman of the All-party parliamentary group on betting and gaming.[27][28]
The Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, a body set up in 2014 to monitor political lobbying, ruled that Benton had not conducted "unregistered consultant lobbying activity" on behalf of the gambling industry based on "assurances" that they had received.[29]
In December 2023, a report by the Commons Standards Committee stated that "The meeting the undercover reporters was not in any sense of Mr Benton’s seeking, and there is no evidence that he has ever sought opportunities to make improper financial gains from his position as a Member."
The report concluded, however, that his interactions with The Times were a "very serious breach" of lobbying rules and that he had given the message that "he was corrupt and 'for sale' and that so were many other Members of the House". The committee recommended that he be suspended from Parliament for 35 days.[30][31] In February 2024, Benton lost his appeal against the proposed suspension.[32] MPs later voted to approve his suspension of 35 days from the House of Commons,[33][34] triggering a recall petition which, if successful, would have led to a by-election.[35][36] On 25 March 2024, however, Benton tendered his resignation and ceased to be an MP when he was appointed as Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead.[37]
Personal life
Benton married Harry Symonds in November 2021 in the Palace of Westminster.[38] He is gay and came out to his parents shortly before his wedding.[39]
