The Successful petition to recall Independent MP Fiona Onasanya forces by-election in Peterborough
After 19,261 people signed a recall petition to remove the city’s disgraced MP Fiona Onasanya. Ms Onasanya, 35, was jailed in January, and released the following month, after lying about a speeding offence.
She was expelled by Labour after her conviction and had been representing Peterborough as an independent.
A 10% threshold was required to remove Ms Onasanya, who will be allowed to stand in the by-election.
According to a spokeswoman for Peterborough City Council, the number of people who signed the petition amounted to 27.6% of eligible residents.
Slender majority
Commons Speaker John Bercow confirmed the recall petition had been successful.
He told MPs: “Fiona Onasanya is no longer the member for Peterborough and the seat is accordingly vacant.
“She can therefore no longer participate in any parliamentary proceedings as a member of parliament.”
Ms Onasanya, who was jailed for perverting the course of justice, has become the first MP to be removed by the recall process, introduced by David Cameron in 2015.
She was first elected to Parliament as a Labour MP with a slender majority of 607 in 2017.
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