The British Conservative MP, Mark Pritchard, asked the British
Parliamentary Commission for Standards to look into the accusations made
by The Daily Telegraph, who says that he has offered to mediate
investments in Albania through his political contacts.
The MP claims that the newspaper’s accusations are unfounded and that he is discussing the matter with his lawyers. Telegraph says that their undercover reporter met the MP in London to discuss hiring him as a consultant, and that he could enable investments by using his political contacts in Albania.
The newspaper says that he asked 3000 pounds each month for his consultancy services, as well as 3 per cent of any deal — meaning he could have received more than £300,000 to secure the investment in Albania of 10 million pounds, for a group of boutique hotels in Albania.
The British MP has allegedly told the undercover journalist that “To be completely brutal, I know the mayor, I know the prime minister, I know the speaker.”
Mr.Pritchard has visited Tirana in 2010, but he said that he had close contacts with high ranked politicians, and he even sent a message to the Mayor of Tirana, Lulzim Basha, so that he could tell them the type of investments that the authorities were interested on”, the Daily Telegraph says.
But the newspaper doesn’t say if there has been any contact between him and the Mayor of Tirana. The British newspaper has started the investigation on Pritchard a few months ago, after some political sources expressed their concern that he could be using his power for personal profits.
According to the Telegraph, during a series of meetings in London at five-star hotels, private clubs and restaurants, Mr Pritchard then repeatedly offered to help set up business deals in a series of countries where he has parliamentary connections.
Pritchard has claimed that he has not violated the Code of Conduct and that his business contacts were not related to his work in Parliament. On September 2013, Pritchard has officially registered his company “Mark Pritchard Advisory Limited” to the Parliament authorities.
Telegraph says that so far he has had no registered clients, and being interested in the Albanian investments, he had invited the undercover journalist to go with him in Albania but not in an official travel. Pritchard denies all claims and says that he is consulting his lawyers. He is a well known figure of the British conservative party, and who also criticizes Prime Minister Cameron.
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