This week Angela Rayner intends to set out Labour’s plan to clean up politics after 13 years of Tory sleaze and scandal. She boldly claims, “We’ll put a stop to the revolving door - with tough rules and enforcement.”

She then claims Labour will overhaul a broken system that has made corporate cronyism rife. It all sounds like a noble move until you ask one question…

“Where’s Nick Brown?”

Sir Keir Starmer’s former Chief Whip, Nick Brown MP, was temporarily suspended pending investigation. It has been 245 days since Brown had to stand aside from the Labour Party for an undisclosed reason pending a complaints process.

Nick Brown had been Chief Whip under six Labour leaders – Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Harriet Harman, Ed Miliband, Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer. So this suspension is surprising, if not unprecedented, for a previously central party figure. Indeed, he’s the fifth longest-serving MP in Parliament.

Why the complete secrecy about his suspension? What does the Labour leader know? Is the truth behind this bad enough to tarnish Labour’s image, perhaps enough for them to lose the election, leaving Rayner’s rhetoric as empty as Labour’s policy box?

Even more curious is the fact that there is such a shortage of MSM journalists prepared to ask the question, “Why?” Yet the taxpayer is still paying his wages!

Labour had plenty to say about Nadine Dorries for being unavailable to her constituents whilst down under. That was for only a few weeks. Nick, meanwhile, has gone missing for almost a year. If he’s not representing local people, should he still be paid?

The Libertarian party believes he should not receive payments while unavailable to represent his constituents. The public in Newcastle upon Tyne East should have the opportunity for a recall of their MP. They deserve at least the token representation the two-party system gives them.