In Guido’s Sun column yesterday we revealed that the disgraced former MP Denis MacShane has become a lobbyist despite still under police investigation for expenses fiddles. The laptop grabber is currently hawking around his CV in which he describes himself as a self-employed consultant based in “London, Paris and Washington”, “advising Asian, US and UK based firms on government policy problems and media strategy”. For some reason the would-be lobbyist’s CV doesn’t mention why he was kicked out of Parliament and remains to this day under investigation by the Metropolitan Police.

His alleged new offices in “London, Paris and Washington” will be a big step up from his old office – the garage of his semi-detached house in Rotherham – for which over 8 years he pocketed £125,000 in office rent expenses from the taxpayer…

Some good news to end the week on: police have handed a file of evidence against Denis MacShane to the CPS.

Decision time…

Read all Guido’s stories on expenses cheat MacShane here.

Deliciously, he replaces Denis MacShane…

Tin foil hat time over at the progressive workhouse that is the Staggers. Apparently the police have re-opened their investigations into proven liar Denis MacShane because of David Cameron’s speech on Europe. No, really:

“What’s really going on with this new police investigation into Denis MacShane’s expenses? Months ago, the police said there would be no charges, and there’s no new information. There’s a reason why they have suddenly reopened it, now of all times, and it’s got nothing at all to do with Denis’s expenses, and everything to do with David Cameron’s speech about Europe.”

Francis Beckett froths on before admitting MacShane is a old friend and then saying it’s all fine because David Laws thieved more. He then has a go at Guido for doing his job of exposing crooks. Yes Guido is vindictive, MacShane would still be at it if he was not…

Poor old Kevin Maguire. You know how it is; put a good word in for a disgraced mate, after all, what harm could come from bigging them up despite the fact they were forced out of Parliament for their thieving ways? Bit too risky for the Mirror so pop a kind word in the Staggers, hardly anyone will see it there anyway. Poor old Denis, he deserves a pat on the back. Et cetera:

“Britain’s nascent Eurofan fightback against the Europhobes is tussling with how to utilise Denis MacShane, a former MP who many on both sides of the Commons feel was treated roughly when forced to quit Rotherham. It was MacEurope, a walking encyclopaedia on all things EU, who spotted instantly that Cameron’s double-Dutch big speech on 22 January would upset Monsieur Hollande and Frau Merkel by clashing with the 50th-anniversary celebrations in Berlin of a Franco- German Élysée treaty. Denis the Menace has baggage but few will be as combative or as skilled in the trench warfare ahead.”

Presumably Kevin filed this before the police relaunched their fraud investigation into MacShane yesterday.

“Baggage” is one way of describing it.

He will be super-useful coordinating the great EU-fight back from a cell.

Is it too early to open the champagne on a Monday morning?

The Met have just announced that they are to reopen the investigation into Denis MacShane’s mystery £7,000 fraud.

As mystic Guido alluded to on Friday afternoon.

It looks like he will be needing those files on his “welcome back to the Labour Party” cake after all.

Developing…

Shamed expenses cheat Denis MacShane will not be prosecuted…for swearing down a megaphone during a demonstration last year. The former Rotherham MP was reported to the police after launching a four-letter tirade in front of a crowd in October, but no further action is to be taken due to lack of evidence.

He might not be so lucky the next time the cops come calling…

The history of the Fabian Society is full of evil, though Guido was under the impression they were pretending they had cleaned up their act. Their AGM takes place on Saturday in SW1, and a certain fraudster is due to take up his position on their committee:

Fabian Society Executive Committee Elections 2012/13

Elected

Stephen Twigg 607
Rachel Reeves 600
Sadiq Khan 556
Vera Baird 478
Denis MacShane 471
Jessica Asato 454
Austin Mitchell 429
Kate Green 401
Seema Malhotra 392
Suresh Pushpananthan 390
Kate Groucutt 385
Sara Ibrahim 372
Sundar Thavapalasundaram 287
Ivana Bartoletti 277
Sally Prentice 276

The last famous Fabian to go to prison was Oswald Mosley.

UPDATE: Fabians get in touch to say Denis is out.

MacShame’s grovelling is starting to look as pathetic as it is empty. Today he apologised to the people of Rotherham in a letter to the Yorkshire Post:

“How do I say sorry? Rotherham has been such an important part of my life and I have let this wonderful town, its terrific people and my constituency down so very badly. I accept fully the responsibility for my actions. That I was at grievous fault there can be no doubt. I cannot convey how much I will miss Rotherham. I am not from South Yorkshire but the people took me into their bonds of friendship and made my young family…feel very much at home. I finish by apologising from the bottom of my heart for the damage I have done, I hope only temporarily, to the good name of Rotherham, through my folly and mistakes.”

Meanwhile the CPS met with cops this week to discuss reopening the criminal investigation. He will need to do more than say sorry when they come calling…

Parliamentary privilege was cited last night by David Grossmann in his Newsnight report as being an obstacle to bringing Denis MacShane to trial, the Labour MP John Mann disagrees:

Not true that #macshane letters are covered by parliamentary privilege. It cannot be used to defend against criminal offences by an MP—
John Mann MP (@JohnMannMP) November 03, 2012

On Friday Guido was tipped off by a source close to the Standards and Privileges Committee that once they had published their report the way was open for the police to resume their investigations. After consulting a barrister, who was in absolutely no doubt that parliamentary privilege was no longer an obstacle, Guido wrote to Scotland Yard asking them to resume the case – as did the Tory MP Philip Davies.

In 2009 we did the same for Jim Devine who, like Denis MacShane, submitted falsified invoices to back up expense claims. You may recall that David Chaytor, Elliot Morley and Jim Devine went to the Supreme Court to argue that they were protected by parliamentary privilege. They attempted to use the 300-year-old law to argue that any case against them should be dealt with by Parliament rather than the courts. The Supreme Court ruled that expense fiddles were ordinary crimes not covered by parliamentary privilege. Devine was sentenced to 16 months…