Peterborough MP Fiona Onasanya jailed for perverting the course of justice

Fiona Onasanya arrives at court ahead of sentencing

Ms Onasanya was taken away to start her prison sentence after The Honourable Mr Justice Stuart- Smith sentenced her this lunch time.

She will serve half the sentence inside prison, with the other half in the community on licence.

RELATED: Peterborough MP Fiona Onasanya court case - full timeline of eventsThe sentence means a recall petition will be set up - but only after the appeal process has concluded, which could take several months.

The recall petition would mean a by-election would be triggered if at least 10 per cent of constituents signed it. Ms Onasanya would be eligible to stand in the by-election.

Festus Onansanya, her brother, has been sentenced to 10 months in jail.

Last month Ms Onasanya was found guilty of one count of perverting the course of justice following a re-trial at The Old Bailey. The jury found she had lied about who was behind the wheel of her Nissan Micra when it was caught speeding in Thorney.

A jury had been unable to reach a verdict at the original trial a month before.

Mr Onasanya pleaded guilty to three counts of perverting the course of justice on November 5. One of the counts he admitted is the same count Ms Onasanya was found guilty of.

The trial heard how Ms Onasanya named a Russian man as the driver of the car when it was caught speeding in July 2017.

However, the Russian man was in his native country at the time the offence was committed.

The MP said friends and family often drove her car - and she was not sure who had been driving at the time.

She also said she had not filled in the Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP), having left it at her mother’s ‘for the correct driver to fill in.’

She has made no comment on the guilty verdict, but has since been sacked by the Labour Party, and is now an independent MP.

However, in a leaked WhatsApp conversation with other Labour MPs, she compared her situation to that of Jesus and other Biblical figures.