Politics

Braverman off the hook over speeding fine row

Suella Braverman will not be sacked over speeding fine row, the prime minister has said.

The MP for Fareham will remain as home secretary after it was revealed she asked civil servants to arrange a private driving awareness course for her after she was caught speeding.

Rishi Sunak said these matters “do not amount to a breach of the Ministerial Code” in a statement.

But in a letter to Braverman he said: “As you have recognised, a better course of action could have been taken to avoid giving rise to the perception of impropriety.”

Braverman has been accused of breaching the code by asking taxpayer-funded civil servants to help with a private matter.

She later accepted a fine and penalty points on her driving licence for the speeding offence.

In her letter to Mr Sunak, the Home Secretary said: “I sought to explore whether bespoke arrangements were possible, given my personal circumstances as a security-protected minister.

“I recognise how some people have construed this as me seeking to avoid sanction – at no point was that the intention or outcome.

“Nonetheless, given the fundamental importance of integrity in public life, I deeply regret that my actions may have given rise to that perception, and I apologise for the distraction this has caused.”

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Jack Peat

Jack is a business and economics journalist and the founder of The London Economic (TLE). He has contributed articles to VICE, Huffington Post and Independent and is a published author. Jack read History at the University of Wales, Bangor and has a Masters in Journalism from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

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