An all-party group of 140 MPs urging �justice for Equitable Life policyholders� has been rebuffed in its attempt to meet the government�s independent adviser on the issue Sir John Chadwick.

An all-party group of 140 MPs urging "justice for Equitable Life policyholders" has been rebuffed in its attempt to meet the government's independent adviser on the issue Sir John Chadwick.

The group had also asked to meet the Treasury minister Kitty Ussher - just before she resigned over her expenses.

Now an early-day motion has been lodged by the group calling on Chadwick to resign.

The retired judge was appointed to advise on setting up a complex ex gratia payment scheme, targeted at certain classes of policyholder, when the government controversially rejected the recommendation of the parliamentary ombudsman to establish a full compensation scheme.

Chadwick's polite refusal to meet MPs was sent to Daniel Kawczynski, a Conservative MP who chairs the all-party group, by Simon Bor, signing himself "private secretary to Sir John Chadwick".

But according to Paul Braithwaite, secretary of the 20,000-strong Equitable Members Action Group: "Mr Bor is believed to be on secondment from the Treasury only rigorous detective work revealed this apparent conflict of interest."

He added that Chadwick "spends weeks at a time out of the country in Dubai, the Cayman Islands and Guernsey and indeed won't be back before the end of the month".

The early-day motion, lodged yesterday by Kawczynski, expresses MPs "intense anger and frustration" that Chadwick "refuses to interact with representatives in Parliament".

It says MPs are "appalled that, at a time when 15 Equitable Life policyholders are dying every day, and while thousands of other policyholders worry for their livelihoods in retirement, Sir John is frequently abroad (and is) presently out of the country until 29 June".

The motion says the role apparently being played by a Treasury secondee to its "independent"

adviser represents a "complete conflict of interest".

It concludes that the House has "no confidence in Sir John and calls on him to resign this position with immediate effect".

A Treasury spokesman said: "The most important thing for Sir John Chadwick to be doing is getting on with the work that the government has asked him to undertake, in order that the government can establish a payment scheme. That is what he is doing."

He added: "It is normal practice for civil servants to provide suppor t to independent advisers.Sir John is also assisted by his own chambers and independent actuaries. The Treasury has put in place arrangements to ensure there is no conflict of interest, with different parts of the department dealing with the establishment of a payment scheme and representations to Sir John."