STANDARDS in public life have come under intense scrutiny in the last fortnight, leaving public confidence at an all-time low.

Many MPs have second jobs, with some, like Sir Geoffrey Cox coining in vast sums on top of their already high salaries.

Freebies, cash for answering questions and donations from the private sector are also the source of deep concern.

FULL LIST: The North East MPs raking in thousands in donations and second jobs

This week, The Northern Echo lifts the lid on where MPs in our region get their income as part of our The Money Trail investigation tracing the cash behind our MPs.

We tracked the cash trail using the Register of Members' Financial Interests, and while there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing, there are some surprising results.

We're publishing the records held for every MP in the North East and North Yorkshire to help you understand how your politician compares.

What exactly is on the register

There are ten main categories on the register, which is maintained and updated by the Parliamentary for Commissioner for Standards, and require an MP to declare, where appropriate.

MPs in England must declare additional paid employment (second jobs), donations, gifts, hospitality and any homes where the value is more than £100,000 and/or provides rental income of more than £10,000 a year.

They must also declare any shares they have which amount to more than 15 percent of the issues share capital of that company or more than 15 percent of a partnership, while they must declare any shares valued more than £70,000.

When it comes to family, MPs are required to declare whether any members are employed and receive more than £700 in a calendar year as this comes from taxpayers' money (parliamentary expenses).

MPs are also required to declare the details of any family members involved in "lobbying," which is when an individual tries to persuade someone in Parliament to support a specific policy or campaign.

What's on Stockton North MP Alex Cunningham's register

These are the figures for Labour Stockton North, Alex Cunningham as of Monday, November 1.

He had no secondary employment but took part in paid surveys

Mr Cunningham is recorded as receiving hundreds of pounds in payment from surveys carried out over the year, with all fees paid to Stockton North CLP.

He has received payments from Savanta ComRes of Melville Street in Edinburgh, with eight payments of £75 for between ten and 15 minutes of time. 

He has also received a number of payments for further surveys by YouGov of Featherstone Street, London, with seven payments of £100 received.

A further three payments, two lots of £70 and one of £110 for again between ten and 20 minutes of his time was paid.

Lastly, Mr Cunningham reveived two payments of £200 from Ipsos Mori of Thomas More Square, London, for further survey work, which took around 60 minutes in total.

He employs one family member 

Mr Cunningham has declared that his son, John Cunningham is employed as a senior caseworker and so is paid from parliamentary expenses.

The Northern Echo approached Alex Cunningham for comment.

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