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Owen Paterson acted ‘acted as lobbyist’ without being registered

A former Conservative cabinet minister acted as a lobbyist without being registered to do so, an investigation has concluded.

The lobbying regulator has made a preliminary ruling that Owen Paterson, who was a paid consultant for healthcare company Randox, should have registered as a lobbyist.

It said Mr Paterson personally contacted the health secretary eight times between January and October 2020 in relation to Randox.

Mr Paterson resigned as an MP in 2021 after he was found to have broken Parliament’s lobbying rules. He was facing suspension from the Commons.

In 2021 the Commons Standards Committee concluded that Mr Paterson had misused his position as an MP to benefit two firms that he worked for.

This followed a damning report on his behaviour by the then-standards commissioner Kathryn Stone.

The committee recommended Mr Paterson be suspended from the Commons for 30 sitting days – a sanction that could have led to a recall petition in his constituency, and the possibility of him facing a by-election.

The lobbying regulator, the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, said its proposed conclusions could change depending on Mr Paterson’s response.

The BBC has contacted Mr Paterson for comment.