The DUP's Ian Paisley is to be suspended from the House of Commons for 30 sitting days from 4 September following a major breach of parliamentary rules, MPs have confirmed.

They supported the punishment recommended by the Committee on Standards during a Commons debate.

Mr Paisley was not in the chamber for the debate.

The DUP has suspended Mr Paisley from membership of the party pending further investigation into his conduct.

In a statement, the party said that its officers have considered the report and takes the matters contained within it very seriously.

The DUP said it does not intend to make any further comment on the issue during the investigation.

Earlier, Mr Paisley said those seeking a by-election after his breach of parliamentary rules were "opportunists".

The North Antrim politician vowed to fight for his seat if he faced the electorate over his failure to declare two luxury family holidays paid for by the Sri Lankan government.

In March 2014, he lobbied against a proposed United Nations resolution to investigate alleged human rights abuses during a civil war on the Indian Ocean island without citing his financial benefits.

If 10% of his constituents sign a petition, an election will be called.

Mr Paisley told his local paper, the Ballymena Guardian, he deeply regretted his actions.

He added: "There are also some who would have me booted out of parliament and a by-election called to fill that vacancy.

"They are opportunists, some with questionable motives, and I can tell them that I have no intention of going quietly into the night.

"If a petition leads to a by-election make no mistake about it, I will seek re-election as I have never run away from an election in my life and don't intend to do so now."

Mr Paisley is one of ten pro-Brexit Democratic Unionists helping to prop up Theresa May's minority Government.

He has already denied he had any ulterior motive for that "genuine mistake" in 2013, adding that he accepted his "total failure" and offered an unreserved apology to the House of Commons.

The Commons Standards Committee said he had committed "serious misconduct" and his actions were of a nature to bring the Commons into disrepute.

The report said the cost of the hospitality may have been "significantly more" than Mr Paisley's £50,000 estimate, with the holidays including business-class air travel, accommodation at first-class hotels and more for him and his wider family.

The trips included meeting with Sri Lankan governmental figures.

Mr Paisley told the Ballymena Guardian he had worked in the island state on many occasions, discussing the Northern Ireland peace process and its relevance internationally.

Enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions, torture and other serious human rights violations and abuses were committed with impunity before, during and in the aftermath of the armed conflict between Sri Lankan government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that ended in 2009, campaign group Amnesty International has said.