The MP at the centre of a gambling sting said politicians allow companies to underprice gifts to avoid transparency rules.
Scott Benton, who has been stripped of the Tory whip pending an investigation, told undercover reporters there were “ways around” the strict hospitality restrictions that MPs are expected to comply with.
Parliamentarians are required to register any gifts, benefits or hospitality with a value of more than £300 that they receive from a source based in Britain.
Speaking to journalists from The Times, who were posing as representatives of a fake gambling firm, Mr Benton said: “A lot of companies try to be quite cute about the level of the hospitality to make sure it falls just under, so people don’t have to declare it.
“It normally works for the company and it normally works for MPs as well. So, without saying too much, you would be amazed at the number of times I’ve been to the races and the ticket comes to £295.”
He added: “There are ways around it, absolutely. Everyone – well, not everybody, but a lot of companies – would utilise [it].”
Mr Benton, the MP for Blackpool South, has declared more than £8,500 in hospitality since June 2021, including tickets he received from gambling firms to the Euro 2020 semi-final and Ascot.
The undercover investigation saw Mr Benton filmed offering to lobby ministers on behalf of a fictitious gambling company and suggesting he was prepared to help an investment fund obtain “behind-the-scenes” information.
He guaranteed that he could leak a copy of a forthcoming white paper on gambling reforms to the company at least 48 hours before it was made public, which would potentially allow them to profit from market-sensitive information.
Richard Holden, the roads minister, said Mr Benton – the chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on betting and gaming – had behaved in a “totally unacceptable” way.
When it was put to him during an interview with Times Radio that “you can’t really get any worse than that, can you?”, Mr Holden replied, “no”. Told that Mr Benton was “one of yours”, he said: “Well, he isn’t anymore.”
Mr Benton was approached for comment.