Phil Boswell

Philip John Boswell (born 23 July 1963) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill since being elected in the 2015 United Kingdom general election until he lost to Labour candidate Hugh Gaffney in the 2017 United Kingdom general election by 1,586 votes.[1]

Phil Boswell
Boswell in 2016
Member of Parliament
for Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
In office
8 May 2015 – 9 June 2017
Preceded byTom Clarke
Succeeded byHugh Gaffney
Personal details
Born (1963-07-23) 23 July 1963
Coatbridge, Scotland, UK
Political partyScottish National Party
Alma materGlasgow Caledonian University
WebsiteOfficial website

Early life

Boswell was raised in Coatbridge and worked there for a brief time as a policeman.[2]

Oil and gas industry

Boswell then found work in the oil industry, as a quantity surveyor and contracts engineer.[2] He spent more than a decade in the oil and gas industry, with work taking him to Hong Kong, Egypt and the Falklands.[3]

Controversies

In December 2015 Boswell was criticised for having previously received an £18,000 interest-free loan from US energy company Phillips 66 while working for them as a contracts manager. Earlier in 2015, Boswell had tabled a motion in the House of Commons, calling for Chancellor George Osborne to close the "Mayfair tax loophole" tax avoidance scheme. An SNP spokesperson stated that Boswell had always declared his interests, and was committed to ending tax avoidance schemes.[4]

In January 2016 it was announced that Boswell would be investigated by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards over the claim that he did not properly record his directorship of a company in the Commons Register of Members' Interests, thus breaching parliamentary procedure.[5] He was registered with Companies House as the sole director of Boswell and Johnston Ltd.[6] On 30 March 2016 it was reported that this complaint had been upheld, however the Standards Commissioner stated that Mr Boswell had made a "genuine mistake" and that she did not think this was done in an attempt to conceal his financial interests.[7]

In May 2016 Boswell repaid £555 which he had previously claimed on parliamentary expenses against the costs of promotional videos, this followed the Independent Parliamentary Standards Association finding that they were not eligible because they did not relate to parliamentary activities.[8]

References
  1. "Election 2015: Coatbridge, Chryston & Bellshill". BBC News.
  2. Sanderson, Daniel (28 April 2015). "Constituency profile: Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill". The Herald. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  3. Geoghegan, Peter (6 May 2015). "The People's Election: The final chapter ... Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill". The National. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  4. "SNP backs MP Phil Boswell over tax avoidance scheme". BBC News. 7 December 2015.
  5. "SNP MP Phil Boswell faces Standards Commissioner investigation". BBC News. 5 January 2016.
  6. Settle, Michael (5 January 2016). "Standards commissioner launches full inquiry into SNP MP's financial interests". The Herald.
  7. "Phil Boswell: Complaint upheld against SNP MP - BBC News". BBC News. bbc.co.uk. 30 March 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  8. "SNP MP Phil Boswell repays £555 after expenses probe (From Bracknell News)". bracknellnews.co.uk. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Tom Clarke		 Member of Parliament
for Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
2015–2017		 Succeeded by
Hugh Gaffney


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