Gay Lib Dem MP returns to government in cabinet reshuffle
Lib Dem MP David Laws is returning to government after spending more than two years on the backbenches.
According to the BBC, he has been appointed to take over as children’s minister from fellow Lib Dem MP Sarah Teather.
The Telegraph revealed he had claimed almost £40,000 in rent that was paid to his secret partner breaking the rules on MPs’ second home expenses.
Mr Laws designated his main home as being in his Yeovil constituency and claimed rent on a flat not owned by his partner when expenses rules were changed.
The scandal also forced him to come out of the closet.
Mr Laws said at the time: “I’ve been involved in a relationship with James Lundie since around 2001 — about two years after first moving in with him. Our relationship has been unknown to both family and friends throughout that time.
“James and I are intensely private people. We made the decision to keep our relationship private and believed that was our right. Clearly that cannot now remain the case”.
Mr Laws’ sexuality had been an open secret at Westminster for several years.
