UK Is Not Corrupt, Says Boris Johnson As Parliament Engulfed In Sleaze Row

Parliament's standards watchdog had determined Conservative Owen Paterson committed an "egregious case of paid advocacy" by using his position to promote two firms that paid him.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday he did not believe Britain was a corrupt country, as parliament was embroiled in a growing scandal over lawmakers being paid for external work which may have breached its rules.

The question of members of parliament (MPs) having second jobs has come under renewed scrutiny over the past week, after Johnson's government sought to change parliamentary conflict-of-interest rules to protect a colleague threatened with suspension.

Parliament's standards watchdog had determined Conservative Owen Paterson committed an "egregious case of paid advocacy" by using his position to promote two firms that paid him.

While Paterson ultimately resigned, Johnson's handling of the affair badly damaged party morale, and several leading names in the party are now under the media spotlight.