Mikael Phillips, the Member of Parliament for North West Manchester, should have filed his 2022 statutory declarations on time. But he didn’t. As a result, the Integrity Commission ruled that he should be charged. This ruling carries significant implications for Phillips, potentially affecting his political career and public perception.
The report confirming the Integrity Commission’s decision was tabled in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, October 15.
According to the report prepared by the Commission’s director of investigations, Kevon Stephenson, Mikael Phillips, MP, was legally obligated to file a statutory declaration with the Commission for 2022 within a given time.
This declaration is a formal statement of a person’s financial affairs and is a key requirement for public officials to maintain transparency and accountability. Failure to file it on time can result in legal consequences, as in the case of Mikael Phillips.
Mr. Stephenson said Phillips failed to submit the requisite declaration by the due date and provided no reasonable cause for his failure.
Director of corruption prosecution, Keisha Prince-Kameka, said Mr. Phillips also failed to pay the fixed penalty of $250,000 before the required notice period expired.
Mrs Prince-Kameka concluded that there was conclusive evidence that Mr. Phillips breached the requirements under sections 39 and 41 of the Integrity Commission Act.
Unfortunately, Mr.Mikael Phillips did not acknowledge that he was the subject of an Integrity Commission report until the IC sent the report to Parliament.
In a media release, Mr. Phillips admitted that his 2022 statutory declaration was late due to a delay in obtaining all the relevant documents.
He said the documents were submitted shortly after the deadline. According to the MP, he has since fully complied with all the requirements.
He added that the late filing penalty of $250,000 has been paid.
According to unconfirmed reports, the Integrity Commission charged Mikael after his blatant refusal to pay the fine.