A 60-YEAR-OLD man has been arrested in relation to the cash for honours scandal.

Scotland Yard said the man was arrested this morning in the borough of Redbridge in east London.

The BBC named the man as Des Smith, a former government advisor and secondary school headmaster.

Police only said that the arrested man was not a MP and that he was arrested for an offence under the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925.

As an advisor to the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust he helped ministers find sponsors for schools.

In an undercover investigation by The Sunday Times Mr Smith reportedly said wealthy individuals could expect to obtain honours and peerages by sponsoring schools.

He resigned after the scandal broke.

Police have not said which political party was connected to the arrest.

Last week the MET said it had received four complaints about the Labour Party under section 1(1) of the Act.

An inquiry, led by the Met's deputy assistant commissioner, John Yates, was launched after a complaint by Scottish and Welsh nationalist MPs.

The House of Lords appointments commission reportedly blocked the appointment of four of the Labour Party's nominations for peerages.

It was revealed that all four were wealthy businessmen who had made loans to Labour.

A Conservative nominee was revealed to have loaned the party £2 million.

None were on the list of new working life peers that was published earlier this week.