Maria Miller has resigned her position as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport over a row about her expenses.
Following a year-long inquiry into Miller’s parliamentary expenses the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Kathryn Hudson, recommended that Mrs Miller repay £45,000 in expenses.
However the MPs of the Standards Committee overruled the commissioner and asked Miller to repay £5,800 and to make an apology to the House of Commons for a lack of cooperation with the inquiry.
Despite making that apology this week, the row has rumbled on with several senior Conservatives demanding her resignation.
Mrs Miller, in her resignation letter to the Prime Minister, said that the controversy over expenses had “become a distraction from the vital work this government is doing”.
Her decision comes hours before her position was likely to face intense scrutiny at Prime Minister’s Questions this afternoon.
The Prime Minister may appoint a new Secretary of State as early as today. Generally when a minister leaves, his or her Special Advisers (SpAds) also go, which means that new appointments may also be made in these positions once the new Secretary of State has been appointed, although this process could take weeks.
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