Conservative MP who told footballer Marcus Rashford to stick to football, has a second job
The Tory MP for Dover, Natalie Elphicke, has been accused of hypocrisy after it was revealed she had a second job despite once suggesting England star Marcus Rashford should stick to his day job.
The Tory backbencher had reprimanded the England striker for missing a penalty in the Euro 2020 final in a private WhatsApp group with colleagues, suggesting if he hadn’t spent time campaigning against the government for free school meals he might have made the shot.
However according to Elphicke’s Register of Public Interests, the Tory MP has spent hundreds of hours on work unrelated to her parliamentary duties and had a second job at the time she criticised Rashford to colleagues.
It seems the Conservative backbencher pockets £36,000 on top of her £82,000 MP’s salary in her role as chair of the New Homes Quality Board (NHQB), an independent watchdog for new-build houses.
Rashford was one of three England players to miss a penalty during the tense penalty shoot-out in the Euro final, which was the team’s first major final since the 1966 World Cup.
In a WhatsApp message first leaked by GB News, the Tory MP told colleagues: “They lost – would it be ungenerous to suggest Rashford should have spent more time perfecting his game and less time playing politics”, sparking public outrage.
After the comments made headlines, Elphicke was forced to apologise on Twitter.
Last night I shared the frustration and heartbreak of millions of England fans. The team gave their all. Congratulations and onwards to the World Cup! https://t.co/xKK7RjgOKn
— Natalie Elphicke MP (@NatalieElphicke) July 12, 2021
Last year, Manchester and England star Rashford forced the government into two humiliating U-turns over providing free school meals to low-income families over the Easter and Autumn school holidays.
Rashford was later awarded an MBE for his services to vulnerable children during the covid-19 pandemic.
Writing in The Spectator, Rashford later satirised Elphicke’s comments writing: “Disappointingly for some, the ‘stick to football’ advice doesn’t cut it where I’m from.
Controversy over MP’s second jobs first arose last week in the wake of the Owen Paterson lobbying scandal.
It’s since been revealed by analysis of the Register of Public Interests that at least a quarter of Tory MPs have second jobs, earning over £4m a year, prompting public debate over whether an MP has time for two jobs.
Green MP for Brighton Pavillion, Caroline Lucas, rejected the idea MPs have time for additional work while meeting the needs of their constituents, telling the BBC she worked up to 80 hours a week and it was “quite preposterous” to have time for a second well-paid role.
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