A report from the Public Administration Committee has called on the government to impose a two-year ban on former ministers taking jobs “directly [related] to their previous areas of policy and responsibility”.

The government currently advises MPs on whether private sector roles constitute of a conflict of interest. But a change in the rules could make appointments like George Osborne’s post at the Evening Standard illegal -- and help close the ‘revolving door’ between Westminster and big business.

Trust in politicians is at rock bottom. We have an election coming up which could see ministers lose their seats by the dozens. Let’s move now, and make sure the rules are in place so politicians can’t exploit their office to land cushy private sector jobs.

Parliament: stop the revolving door and impose a two-year ban on MPs taking up private sector jobs that conflict with their public duty!

The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) currently works in an advisory role in Whitehall on the issue. But the Public Administration Committee report recommends Acoba be given statutory powers to make binding decisions regarding ministers future employment.

“The failures of governments in this regard have damaged public trust in politics and public institutions and led to repeated scandals,” it said. “Acoba in its current form is a toothless regulator which has failed to change the environment around business appointments.”

Among those who’ve swapped Westminster for the private sector are Lord Hague of Richmond, who advises international business consultancy Teneo, and former energy secretary Sir Ed Davey, who advises a PR and lobbying company that represents clients such as EDF Energy.

With a general election now on the horizon, we need to strengthen the power of government to hold former ministers to account. Over 25,000 of us signed the petition when a former government employee was caught milking ex-colleagues for information while on Goldman Sachs’ books -- now let’s make sure the government helps put an end to the revolving door.

Impose a two-year ban on MPs taking up cushy private sector jobs after office!

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