How old is Keith Vaz, who’s his wife Maria Fernandes, what was the rent boy scandal and what are his ‘Diversity Nite’ parties?
The married politician was allegedly being caught paying young men for sex
A SLEAZE probe into shamed Labour MP Keith Vaz, who was accused of paying for rent boys, has been reopened by Parliament's new Standards Commissioner.
The investigation was dropped 18 months ago due to Vaz's ill health but it has now been referred back to the Met Police. Here's everything we know about the allegations and Labour politician.
Who is Keith Vaz?
The 61-year-old was born in the British Colony of Aden, located in Yemen, to his Indian parents Xavier and Merlyn, who moved to England in 1965.
His birth name was Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz.
Vaz graduated from Cambridge University with a law degree and worked as a solicitor.
He has been the Labour MP for Leicester East since the 1987 General Election.
Keith Vaz married Maria Fernandes in 1993 and they have two children, a son Luke and daughter, Anjali.
Mr Vaz has been an outspoken politician, campaigning against video game violence.
And he has faced controversy, including being suspended from the House of Commons for one month in 2002 after it emerged he made false allegations that former policewoman Eileen Eggington had phoned his sick mother at home.
Ms Eggington was a friend of Mr Vaz's former personal assistant who claimed the MP and his wife had employed an illegal immigrant as their nanny.
In 2007, he was elected chairman of the influential Home Affairs Committee, a role he held until September 2016, when he resigned following sordid allegations about his private life.
What happened in Keith Vaz sleaze probe?
Parliament’s ethics watchdog has been probing the Labour MP after he was accused of paying for rent boys and was taped discussing buying cocaine.
It had been investigating whether Mr Vaz's behaviour caused “significant damage” to the reputation of Parliament.
Kathyrn Hudson, Parliament’s Commissioner for Standards, suspended the investigation into whether he broke strict Commons rules over MPs' conduct due to his ill health.
However, the probe has been reopened by new Commissioner Kathryn Stone, who took over in January, and has said she will be referring the case back to the Metropolitan Police for investigation.
Mr Vaz did not respond to The Sun's request for comment.
Tory MP Andrew Bridgen called on Mr Vaz to quit Parliament altogether if he is unfit to be an MP when the details of his personal life were first revealed.
He blasted: "If Keith Vaz is not fit to be held to the standards expected of a Member of Parliament then he is not fit to be a Member of Parliament and we should be having a by-election in Leicester East."
What is the Keith Vaz rent boy scandal?
The married politcian was allegedly caught paying young men for sex and asking them to bring the sex-drug poppers to his flat.
A probe captured Vaz appearing to beg for a foursome as he met two Eastern European male prostitutes for sex.
Mr Vaz reportedly told the escorts "we need to get this party started".
The Sunday Mirror has claimed that Mr Vaz tried to hide his identity from the male escorts by claiming to be an industrial washing machine salesman called Jim.
It was reported he had two meetings with the escorts at his flat in Edgware, London.
During the first, which lasted for 90 minutes, on August 27, 2016, he reportedly offered to cover the cost of cocaine, if it was brought to the flat - but said he did not want any.
In a statement Mr Vaz, who is chief of a vice committee, said: "I am genuinely sorry for the hurt and distress that has been caused by my actions in particular to my wife and children.
"I will be informing the committee on Tuesday of my intention to stand aside from chairing the sessions of the committee with immediate effect."
What is his 'Diversity Nite'?
In September 2017 Mr Vaz was well enough to host his traditional "Diversity Nite" at the Labour party conference in Brighton - and was seen dancing with delegates.
The annual bash celebrates racial diversity in the Labour party and Mr Vaz has regularly been pictured dancing a bhangra with ministers at the bash.
He was forced to scrap the event in 2016 following the allegations he paid for male escorts.