A two-year government investigation into former MP Owen Paterson found he worked as an unregistered lobbyist in Parliament.

The investigation by the lobbying watchdog into the former North Shropshire MP’s work with Randox found that he “carried on the business of consultant lobbying while not being registered”.

The Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists was set up by the Government in 2014 to “ensure transparency in the work of consultant lobbyists and their engagement with Ministers and Permanent Secretaries on behalf of clients”.

The findings are in line with the investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards into Mr Paterson’s dealings with Randox which led to him being recommended to be suspended from Parliament.   

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In its decision, the registrar said: “Mr Paterson was a paid consultant for Randox Laboratories Ltd (“Randox”).

“He made personally eight direct communications to the then Secretary of State at the Department for Health and Social Security (“DHSC”) between 26 January 2020 and 24 October 2020.

 “The communications were in relation to Mr Paterson’s client, Randox. Mr Paterson was VAT registered at the time of the communications. The Registrar provisionally considers that the above eight communications were registerable.

"Mr Paterson was not registered on the register at the material time when the communications were made.”

In that time, Randox was awarded hundreds of millions of pounds worth of Government contracts.

At the time of the original investigation in 2021 Mr Paterson said: "The process I have been subjected to does not comply with natural justice.

“I am not guilty and a fair process would exonerate me."

According to the registrar, Mr Paterson has been given “a provisional Notice of Intention to issue a civil penalty”.