Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns was paid hundreds of pounds an hour to guest host a popular radio show, recently published financial records show.

The Conservative MP, who was re-elected in July, was paid £1,000 for three hours work to cover the James O'Brien show on LBC earlier this summer. Other media work included writing two articles for the Daily Mail for which she earned £700.

The MP says the radio work helped her to create a discussion on issues local communities are concerned about such as farming and dementia.

The register of financial interests, which was updated on August 4 also shows how much the MP received in donations towards helping her get re-elected. She was given £2,500 by a Rishi Fernando; £5,000 from Stamford based law firm Duncan and Toplis Ltd and £5,000 from Mark Samworth, a member of the Melton based Samworth Brothers firm.

All MPs have to declare any gifts and financial donations made to them. In the gifts section Mrs Kearns listed a £600 ticket from Attitude magazine to its annual awards and she had her ticket for the Conservative Party winter ball paid for by Lord Michael Hintze.

Alicia Kearns was first elected in 2019 and retained her seat this year (Nub News).

The MP, who was first elected in 2019 and in October 2022 became the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, also listed a number of visits abroad, often paid for by foreign governments.

In August last year she visited Ethiopia and Somalia as a guest of Scottish based charity the Halo Trust, which removes landmines. The same month she listed a study trip for two staff members to Finland paid for by the Finnish government. The financial record says the purpose of the £2,700 trip was to learn about the country's security arrangements and defence policy ahead of its joining NATO. 

In October last year she was a guest of the Jordanian government to the middle east country, where she met with officials and the armed forces. The three day trip is listed as costing just under £1,000 and the same month a three day trip to Kosovo paid for by the country's government for herself and a staff member is recorded costing £1,548.59.

Also listed in her interests – which can be seen in full here – is her membership of the China Research Group. 

The group came to prominence last year when it became public that a former researcher of the Rutland and Stamford MP, Christopher Cash, who was listed as a director, had been arrested that March on spying charges under the official secrets act. He is currently going through the criminal courts.

Mrs Kearns replaced her researcher as the only director of the group listed on Companies House and remains the sole director. Her records also have her listed as a board member of the Great British-China Centre, an organisation set up half a century ago by the foreign office to support relations between the two countries.

Mrs Kearns said: "All visits abroad, and those of my staff, were in my role as Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee. 

 "Financial support listed in my register of interests was received by local businesses or individuals, all funds went directly to my association – not my bank account – and paid for our General Election campaign. 

"The two times I've presented a show on LBC I've been able to create a national discussion on issues our communities feel strongly about, such as assisted dying, dementia and farming. It's great to give local people like Phil Newby and Joe Stanley the chance to discuss issues on the national stage. 

"As listed on my register of interests, my role as director of the China Research Group oversaw the group's work to inform MPs and promote debate about the UK's response to the rise of China."