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Courtesy of the Times - try not to laugh.
The Labour MP found guilty of lying to police to avoid a speeding charge has compared herself to Jesus and Moses in a defiant message to her colleagues. Fiona Onasanya, 35, was suspended and urged to quit the Commons by the Labour Party yesterday after her conviction for perverting the course of justice.
The solicitor lied “persistently and deliberately” to police about who was driving her car in an attempt to avoid penalty points after it was recorded at 41mph in a 30mph zone near Thorney in her Peterborough constituency. But in a message sent to other Labour MPs on various WhatsApp groups this morning and leaked to The Times, Ms Onasanya hinted she would not quit, saying this was instead “the beginning of the next chapter” of her “story”, as it was with Jesus. She wrote: “As many of you are already aware, due to widespread media coverage, I was found guilty of perverting the course of justice. Although I vigorously maintained my innocence, the jury has decided that I am guilty.
“I campaigned for justice and for the interests of ordinary people throughout my entire working life to date, but it is this which has made both national and international press. The first jury was dismissed having failed to reach a decision last month but the second jury reached their conclusion within days.”
She continued: “Regardless of what you believe or suspect, the fact remains that I Fiona, sought to be the choice and voice of change — but this may now take a different path. More than ever before I am asking that you commit time in prayer for my family. “In times like these the natural inclination of believers is to ask God why? I personally do not, because in my experience the answers are usually far above and beyond my reach. What I do know is that I am in good biblical company along with Joseph, Moses, Daniel and his three Hebrew friends who were each found guilty by the courts of their day. “While God did not save them from a guilty verdict he did save them in it and ensured that their greatest days of impact were on the other side of a guilty verdict. Of course this is equally true of Christ who was accused and convicted by the courts of his day and yet this was not his end but rather the beginning of the next chapter in his story.
“Please pray that my family will find peace and strength in this perilous time through this guilty verdict.”
Labour cannot force Ms Onasanya to stand down, although by urging her to resign they effectively called for a by-election in the seat which she narrowly won from the Conservative last year by 607 votes.
Ms Onasanya was accused of colluding with her brother Festus, who a week before the original trial admitted perverting the course of justice to avoid speeding prosecutions on three occasions, including this incident. He already had nine points and risked losing his licence and his job if he incurred any more. The brother and sister face possible jail terms when they are sentenced at the Old Bailey at a future date.
MPs are automatically disqualified from holding their seat if they are sentenced to more than a year in jail. Under laws introduced in 2015 any prison term, even a suspended one, can trigger a “recall” petition. This can force a by-election if signed by 10 per cent of voters in a constituency. In court Nick Brown, Labour’s chief whip, described Ms Onasanya as honest and trustworthy, citing her faith.
In a character witness statement read out in court, Mr Brown said his colleague was “a decent, outgoing character” who was committed to her work in her constituency and as a parliamentarian. He said: “She is a person of strong personal beliefs rooted in her religious faith. I judge her to be honest, trustworthy and reliable.” Ms Oansanya has previously said: “My faith is very, very important. I like to take care of what I call my ‘spirit man’ which is to make sure that I’m always positive and looking at the best in things. My faith shapes my perspective,” she said. “When I won the election I put my hands together, looked up and said ‘thank you and thank you’. Without Him I could not do this. That is my belief.”