A peer has been suspended from Labour’s parliamentary party due to his connections to a disgraced councillor.
Lord Matthew Doyle had served as Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s communications director and was suspended yesterday evening as a result of his ties to former councillor, Sean Morton, who was charged in 2016 for possessing indecent images of children.
Lord Doyle is understood to have remained in contact with Morton and campaigned for him when he ran as an Independent after appearing in court.
While Lord Doyle has been asked to relinquish his role as the whip, it is understood that he will maintain his peerage.
Lord Doyle has reportedly apologised for his past association with Morton and says that he ‘completely condemn(s) the actions for which he was rightly convicted’, claiming that his ‘thoughts are with the victims and all those impacted by these crimes’. He also stated that contact with Morton was limited and that they had not spoken in years.
Lord Doyle told The Independent: ‘At the point of my campaigning support, Morton repeatedly asserted to all those who knew him his innocence, including initially in court. He later changed his plea in court to guilty.
‘To have not ceased support ahead of a judicial conclusion was a clear error of judgement for which I apologise unreservedly.’
