Rob Roberts: MP's failure to resign 'surprising'

Rob Roberts has been suspended from the House of Commons for six weeks

The fact a Welsh MP has not quit after being suspended from parliament for sexual misconduct is "surprising", the former head of a watchdog has said.

An independent panel found Delyn MP Rob Roberts had sexually harassed a member of his staff.

He was suspended for six weeks and has apologised, but said he would "continue to serve" his constituency.

However, Sir Alistair Graham said the allegations undermined the Tory MP's "authority and credibility".

Sir Graham, who chaired the UK's Committee on Standards in Public Life between 2004 and 2007, said he was surprised Mr Roberts had not concluded he had "no future role" in politics.

Mr Roberts has faced cross-party calls to resign, including from two senior Conservative ministers and Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer.

Recall petition unavailable

It came after a former employee of the Tory MP reported Mr Roberts repeatedly propositioned him and asked him to be "less alluring".

Having lost the Tory whip, Mr Roberts, who issued a public statement apologising to the complainant and his constituents, will be free to return to the House of Commons as an independent MP at the end of his suspension.

The complaint against Mr Roberts was investigated by an independent expert panel which was set up to handle harassment and bullying complaints against MPs.

The process used does not include the power to trigger a recall petition, which could in turn lead to a by-election, unlike when cases are assessed by the Commons' Standards Committee.

• Voters want to 'see the back' of MP over sexual misconduct

There have been calls for the "loophole" to be closed so the new processes for investigating complaints of bullying and sexual misconduct could also prompt a recall petition.

Speaking to the BBC's Politics Wales programme Sir Alistair said: "It is a weakness that it isn't aligned with other disciplinary arrangements.

"I am surprised that the individual concerned hasn't personally come to their conclusion that they have no future role in a political career or as a member of parliament."

He added that the allegations were "very serious and must undermine your authority and credibility as a member of parliament".

• Politics Wales, BBC 1 Wales, 10:00 BST, 6 June and on iPlayer