In July this year, Stephen Ladyman, the former Labour minister, wrote to the official in charge of London’s transport. As an MP he might have been expected to be complaining about overcrowded trains for a constituent, but Ladyman had a different agenda. He was pitching for business.

The letter to Peter Hendy, commissioner at Transport for London (TfL), was addressed from the House of Commons and opened with the impressive line: “You may remember me from my time as minister of state for transport.”

In a gentle sales patter, the MP explained he had a second job working as adviser to ITIS Holdings, the traffic information company. Ladyman was offering Hendy the chance of “working together” on transport projects, including a possible 2012 Olympic contract. Thanks to Ladyman’s intervention, ITIS — which pays the MP £1,000 a month — met TfL last week seeking new business.

Ladyman, who left government in June 2007, also drew on his ministerial contacts to make a similar sales pitch to the Highways Agency.

The letters — disclosed under freedom of information (FOI) laws — highlight how former Labour ministers can cash in on their connections and inside knowledge from their time in power. Patricia Hewitt, David Blunkett, Hilary Armstrong, Adam Ingram and Richard Caborn are among the MPs also in the pay of the private sector.

Former ministers accepting well-paid roles in the private sector insist they are valued for their talents and balk at any suggestion they may be used as an entrée to government. Ladyman is the first to admit that he is being paid to help to arrange meetings in Whitehall, as well as to provide advice.

“I use the fact that I might have met them previously when I was a minister as a way of introducing myself,” he explained. “It’s a slightly warmer process than cold calling.”

A House of Commons select committee is already considering whether the rules relating to former ministers’ jobs in the private sector are robust enough. The insight provided by Ladyman into the lobbying process could trigger new calls for a crackdown.

For Paul Flynn, a Labour MP and member of the public administration committee, such lobbying is not a proper use of parliamentary office. “It’s nothing to do with constituency matters,” he said. “It’s trying to gain advantage.”

Ladyman, a former pharmaceutical company executive, was appointed a minister in the health department in 2003 and moved to the DfT in 2005.

At this time ITIS had a contract to provide traffic data to the department, which it lost after he left office. The contract had been extended while Ladyman was a minister, earning the company an extra £1m in revenue. The company says Ladyman played no role in granting the extension.

Ladyman met the company’s executives several times while he was minister. He went to their offices for discussions on future government work and gave a speech at an ITIS dinner at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, southeast London.

Five months after leaving government he accepted the job as an adviser with ITIS. He consulted the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, which advises former ministers on the suitability of any job offers. There was no objection to the new role, but it was made clear that he should not lobby government officials or ministers until June 2008.

FOI documents show that in May 2008 he e-mailed Derek Turner, director of traffic operations at the Highways Agency. The e-mail said: “I’m not allowed to lobby government or its agencies until one year after I left office (June 25th). After that date I’d really like to bring some of my ITIS colleagues along to chat with you.”

Despite Ladyman’s assurance about not lobbying, his e-mail makes a strong case for doing business with ITIS. He wrote: “I believe the services they are offering could be a major benefit for the HA [Highways Agency] . . . I think they might even save you a lot of money.”

His meeting with TfL over the Olympic work took place last week. He said he is now trying to arrange a meeting with Professor Brian Collins, the DfT’s chief scientific adviser.

This weekend Ladyman said he wrote the July letter to TfL from his study at home, but added his Commons address so a reply could be easily forwarded to him. He did not use official stationery and said he had complied with parliamentary rules and the ministerial code.

When Gordon Brown was in opposition he criticised the “revolving door” of the Tory administration from the “cabinet room to the board room”. But in the past five years former Labour ministers have accepted more than 50 jobs in the private sector. Many will now face questions over the exact services they provide for the cash and whether they have been arranging similar meetings.

Among the MPs working in the private sector is Patricia Hewitt, the former health secretary, who has accepted a consultancy worth £45,000 with Alliance Boots and a £55,000 job with Cinven, the investment company; Adam Ingram, the former defence minister, has jobs with EDS, the computer firm, and Argus Libya, a construction company; David Blunkett is paid more than £70,000 as an adviser to two companies

Nuclear companies eager to win contracts for the new generation of power stations are among the employers of former ministers. Richard Caborn, a former trade minister, works for Amec and is non-executive director of Nuclear Management Partners, the consortium which has the £7 billion contract to clean up Sellafield.

The public administration committee’s inquiry into lobbying has heard that while the Association of Professional Political Consultants prohibits its members employing MPs or peers, other companies can pay parliamentarians to lobby for them. The committee’s proposals will be published shortly.

Ladyman has not broken any rules because he was permitted to accept the job with ITIS, providing he did not lobby government officials within a year of leaving office. Ladyman said his role with ITIS had not affected his work as an MP: “I do this in my own time in a way that does not conflict with the interests of my constituents.”

Nifty bit of work

Former Labour ministers who have taken up jobs outside parliament 2003-8

Baroness Amos Travant Capital Partners, Titanium Resources Group
Hilary Armstrong MP GovNet Communications, SITA UK
Lord Bach Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems (now back in government)
David Blunkett MP Entrust (internet security), UC Group, A4e
Baroness Blackstone VT Group
Tony Blair JP Morgan, Zurich Financial Services
Lord Boyd Dundas and Wilson (legal firm)
Stephen Byers MP Consolidated Contractors Company, Yalta European Strategy, ACWA Services
Richard Caborn MP Nuclear Management Partners, Amec
Ivor Caplin MBDA
Charles Clarke MP KPMG, Charles Street Securities, Beachcroft
Lord Evans of Temple Guiting EFG bank
Lord Falconer AmicusHorizon Group, City Development Company for Newcastle and Gateshead
Lord Filkin NCP, Serco
Barry Gardiner MP Reynolds Partners
Lord Goldsmith Debevoise & Plimpton
Nigel Griffiths MP Jabbar Group
Baroness Hollis Pensions Advisory Service
Patricia Hewitt MPAlliance Boots, BT, Cinven
Adam Ingram MP SignPoint Secure, EDS, Argus Libya
Melanie Johnson Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry
Stephen Ladyman MP ITIS Holdings
Christopher Leslie New Local Government Network
Helen Liddell British Energy (now high commissioner in Australia)
Lord Macdonald Scottish Power, Macquarie Capital
Ian McCartney MP Fluor
Denis MacShane MP United Utilities
Alan Milburn MP PepsiCo, Covidien, Lloydspharmacy
Lord Moonie Partygaming, AEA Technology
Chris Pond Cape Claims Services
Nick Raynsford MP Rockpools, Hometrack
John Reid MP Celtic football club
Baroness Symons Rio Tinto, DLA Piper, Consolidated Contractors Company
Paddy Tipping MP North Nottinghamshire LIFT Company
Lord Truscott Gavin Anderson and Company, Gulf Keystone Petroleum, Eastern Petroleum Corporation
Lord Warner PA Consulting, Perot Systems Europe, Apax Partners Worldwide, Byotrol, DLA Piper
Lord Whitty Eaga, Elyo Suez (energy efficiency)

Clampdown

July 1994: Sunday Times investigation finds two Conservative MPs accepted £1,000 to table Commons questions

May 1995: Standards committee led by Lord Nolan recommends MPs should declare all outside earnings

May 1996: Reforms to MPs’ register of interests require far more detailed disclosure of outside earnings

July 2001: Peers are required for first time to maintain a similar register

March 2006: Facing allegations that honours were offered for cash, Tony Blair appoints first adviser on ministerial conflicts of interest

July 2007: Gordon Brown announces new ministerial code, requiring ministers to consult an advisory committee if they take jobs outside parliament within two years of leaving office

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