False expenses MP Chris Davies rejects office manager claims
- Published
Chris Davies has dismissed claims he wanted Sarah Lewis to quit her job
A former MP convicted of submitting false expenses has told an employment tribunal accusations made by an office manager were "completely without foundation".
Chris Davies is being sued for constructive dismissal by Sarah Lewis.
She ran his constituency office in Brecon before quitting in 2018.
Mr Davies was unseated as MP for Brecon and Radnorshire after a recall petition and lost the following by-election.
Giving evidence to the tribunal hearing in Cardiff, Mr Davies said his "catastrophic mistake" over submitting false expense claims had "cost me my career".
He pleaded guilty to charges relating to the claims made in February this year, and was fined - eventually triggering the by-election, which was won by the Liberal Democrats.
He said there had been "genuine reasons" for his actions at the time, and he thought he was carrying out the correct procedures.
"I shouldn't have done what I did," said Mr Davies.
On Monday, his office manager told the tribunal there had been a "climate of fear" as Mr Davies turned against her after she uncovered £700 of false invoices.
But Mr Davies told Wednesday's hearing that he did not know anything about problems with his expenses until February 2018, after Mrs Lewis had gone on sick leave.
"I made a foolish error and I have paid heavily for it. I didn't blame anyone else - it was my mistake," said Mr Davies.
He said he had assumed Mrs Lewis had been looking after his accounts and "if there was an issue she would have raised it with me".
"I had full trust in Mrs Lewis, she was looking after my accounts, that was what she was paid to do," he said.
Mr Davies also denied he had been "etching away at her to encourage her to leave".
Sarah Lewis accused Mr Davies of a "campaign against her"
The tribunal has heard that Mrs Lewis's working hours were reduced in August 2017, following a meeting with Mr Davies.
He said the occasion had been "cordial", and denied calling her unreliable.
He described a meeting in November that year as "robust" after discovering Mrs Lewis had been overpaid for two months.
Mr Davies said: "It goes, surely without saying, as an employer that it's within my rights to ask what's going on?"
The former MP also dismissed an accusation made in a message by Sarah Lewis that there was a "campaign against her".
A claim made by Mrs Lewis that Mr Davies banged filing cabinets and prevented her from leaving a room was "a total fabrication", he said.
The tribunal also heard that when Conservative central headquarters wrote to Mr Davies regarding the concerns that had been raised about his expenses, he replied: "I am presently having employment issues with Sarah Lewis who has worked in my office for two and a half years and is currently off on sick leave.
"I believe this complaint has been sent in order to delay dismissal."
Mrs Lewis' solicitor Nathaniel Caiden put it to Mr Davies that with that letter he had "let the cat out of the bag - you were intending to dismiss her, that's why you were using the word 'dismissed'."
Mr Davies denied invading Mrs Lewis' privacy by accessing files on a work computer that were "clearly of a personal nature".
He said he was "amazed and aghast" at the volume of personal material he discovered on the office computer.
Mr Davies said it related to personal matters, her work as a county councillor and other work and told the hearing he was concerned she was spending time on that work while being paid by the taxpayer.
He denied accusations by Mr Caiden that he "went looking for material to build a case" against Mrs Lewis because of her whistleblowing.
The tribunal is continuing.
Click here to see the full list of candidates for Brecon and Radnorshire in the general election
- Published9 December 2019
