Can MP Imran Khan keep his seat in Wakefield after being convicted of sexual assault?

Despite being found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage boy – and being expelled by the Conservative Party – Imran Ahmad Khan remains the Wakefield MP. At least for now.

As he left Southwark Crown Court following the verdict on Monday, the man who was elected the city's first Tory MP said – via his legal team – that he would appeal the verdict.

Labour, unsurprisingly, is calling for him to resign.

But, ultimately, Khan's fate as a parliamentarian may not be sealed until he is sentenced.

A prison term of a year or more would mean he is automatically removed as an MP and a by-election held to elect his replacement.

A term of less than a year would mean he can continue – at least until the outcome of any appeal.

And an unsuccessful appeal would then mean he is subject to a recall petition.

Recall is where the electorate can trigger a special election to remove an elected representative before the end of their term.

A recall procedure for MPs was introduced in 2015 in response to the MPs' expenses scandal that occurred in the run up to the 2010 General Election.

Fiona Onasanya, the then Peterborough MP, was the first to be removed by recall petition after being convicted of lying about a speeding offence.

The petition would be open for six weeks and 10% of voters would need to sign it to remove Khan as MP. That would then trigger a by-election.

Even then, Khan could choose to stand.

So, while today's verdict has left his reputation, and apparently his political ambitions, in tatters, Khan's career as an MP is not quite over yet.