By Andrew Sparrow From The Guardian

David Maclean, who now sits in the Lords as Lord Blencathra, the former Home Office minister and Tory chief whip, has been ordered to apologise to the Lords for breaching the House’s code of conduct by signing a contract that would involve providing parliamentary services to the government of the Cayman Islands.

The full details are set out in a report from the Lords privileges and conduct committee (pdf).

Here is an extract summarising the case against Maclean.

In 2012 the Commissioner considered a complaint that Lord Blencathra had, in his capacity as the Director of the Cayman Islands Government Office in the United Kingdom, provided parliamentary advice or services in return for payment. The Commissioner found that the evidence did not support the complaint and so dismissed it.

In March 2014 a new complaint was made, on the basis of an article in The Independent. That article was based on a copy of the contract Lord Blencathra agreed with the Cayman Islands Government, which ran from November 2011 to November 2012. Amongst the services that Lord Blencathra in the contract agreed to provide were “liaising with and making representations to … Members of Parliament in the House of Commons, and Members of the House of Lords”.

The Commissioner finds that by agreeing to a contract which would involve the provision of parliamentary services Lord Blencathra breached paragraph 8(d) of the Code of Conduct (which prohibits members from accepting or agreeing to accept payment or other reward in return for providing parliamentary advice or services). Although the Commissioner finds that there is no evidence that Lord Blencathra in fact provided such services, the mere existence of that contractual term put him in breach of the Code.

And here is an apology from Maclean that he has agreed with the committee.

Although I never actually provided nor intended to provide parliamentary services to the Cayman Islands Government in return for payment, I acknowledge and deeply regret that I entered into a written contract under which I was apparently committed to provide such services (as one of 14 specified “consultancy services”).

I now recognise and accept that such a contract was in clear breach of the requirement in paragraph 8(b) of the Code of Conduct that members “must not seek to profit from membership of the House by accepting or agreeing to accept payment or other incentive or reward in return for providing parliamentary advice or services.”

I misled myself into thinking that, since it was understood that I would not be making representations in reality, then the wording did not matter. But words do matter; I was wrong and I apologise to the House for that misjudgement.

When the contract was renewed in November 2012 the reference to providing such services was deleted and in March 2014 the contract ended.

I deeply regret having breached the Code in this way and the embarrassment to the House that I recognise is caused by such conduct. I offer the House my sincere apology.

For more on this story go to: http://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/2014/jul/14/mps-question-theresa-may-over-child-abuse-inquiry-and-surveillance-bill-politics-live-blog#block-53c3b9f0e4b093fa8e0aacd1