Imran Ahmad Khan: What happens when an MP is convicted?

Imran Ahmad Khan is alleged to have assaulted a 15-year-old boy at a party in 2008

UK Parliament Imran Ahmad Khan — Imran Ahmad Khan is alleged to have assaulted a 15-year-old boy at a party in 2008

Wakefield MP Imran Ahmad Khan has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenager at a house party.

But he is still the West Yorkshire city's MP.

Khan was elected for the Conservative Party in 2019 - the first time Wakefield has gone blue since 1931.

After he was charged with sexual assault he was dropped by the Tories - it's called losing the whip - but he remained in Parliament as an independent.

Now he's been found guilty, whether he stays as MP will be dependent on sentencing.

If he gets a prison term of more than a year he is automatically disbarred from being an MP and there will be a by-election to replace him.

Should he be sentenced to less than a year he will be allowed to continue as an MP during any appeals he might make.

If those appeals are unsuccessful he would then be subject to a recall petition.

This is a pretty new thing in parliamentary terms - it came into force in 2015. Before then there was no real mechanism to get rid of MPs convicted of crimes. Fiona Onasanya, who lost her Peterborough seat in 2019, was the first English MP to be removed by recall petition.

In Khan's case, the petition would be open for six weeks and 10% of voters in Wakefield would need to sign it to remove him as MP. If the threshold is met it would trigger a by-election.

He could choose to stand in that by-election if he wanted.

At least 10% of Wakefield residents would have to sign a recall petition for Khan to be expelled

Getty Images Wakefield — At least 10% of Wakefield residents would have to sign a recall petition for Khan to be expelled

Of course, Imran Ahmad Khan could decide to resign from his position.

Under the UK's archaic system MPs aren't technically allowed to resign, thanks to a resolution of the House passed in 1624. It states that death, disqualification and expulsion are the only way an MP can give up their seat.

In order to go, they have to apply to the chancellor for one of two titles that disqualifies them - the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds or the Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead.

Owen Paterson quit as an MP last year following a row over his conduct

Reuters Owen Paterson — Owen Paterson quit as an MP last year following a row over his conduct

The role of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead is currently occupied by former Conservative MP Owen Paterson, who resigned last November after he was found to have broken lobbying rules.

The current Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds is former Batley and Spen MP Tracy Brabin.

She had to apply in order to become West Yorkshire's first elected mayor.

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