MPs EXPENSES 

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Commons accounts show that the taxpayer was hit with a bill of £95.48 million for MPs' expenses, travel, pensions, allowances and staffing costs in 2006/07, up from £90.475 million in the previous year. This was a rise of £4.973 million, or 5.5%. The additional cost allowance, which MPs can put towards interest payments on a mortgage for a second home, rent or hotel bills, rose from £10.866 million to £11.447 million, an increase of 5.3%. Staffing allowances went up from £50.695 million to £53.274 million as MPs took on more office workers, a rise of £2.579 million, or 5.1% and travel expenses rose from £5.994 million to £6.253 million, an extra £259,000 or 4.3%. MPs have also voted to give themselves a £10,000-a-year communications allowance from April this year. (Source: Daily Mail, Jul/07)

Ministers have defended their expenses claims saying all were made within the rules. Downing Street says there was "nothing wrong" with Gordon Brown's £6,500 claim to pay his brother for a cleaner. Lord Mandelson, who claimed £2,850 for his home, before quitting as an MP and selling it for a large profit, said the claims were for essential repairs. Police have been asked to probe how the details were leaked to a newspaper. The newspaper also says the Commons authorities had planned to blank out the addresses of MPs, potentially concealing the way some had regularly changed homes in order to maximise their income.

Scotland Yard said in a statement, "The Metropolitan Police can confirm we have received a request from the House of Commons to investigate the alleged unauthorised disclosure of information relating to members' allowances. We are currently considering their request." A spokesman for the House claimed that there were "reasonable grounds to believe a criminal offence may have been committed". He said, "The House authorities have received advice that there are reasonable grounds to believe a criminal offence may have been committed in relation to the way in which information relating to members' allowances has been handled."

Cabinet Minister Shaun Woodward, claimed 38p for a Muller Crunch Corner yogurt and £1.06 for a pizza from Asda in St Helens in November 2004, which the MP recovered under the category of staff subsistence. Receipts from an office supplier show that Woodward has regular orders for Family Circle biscuits at £7.18 a tin; Gold Blend coffee at £11.22 a tin; Tetley teabags at £3.85 for a box of 440; and Diet Coke, costing £12.56 for each case of 24 cans. A Labour MP claimed 5p for an Ikea carrier bag in his Scottish constituency. One Tory MP claimed £35 every three months for a mole catcher at his country home, another Tory claimed £160 each year to have his Aga serviced and another Tory billed £3.99 for ant killer from Homebase. A male Tory claimed £1.11 a piece for two packs of Tampax in 2005.

MPs have been told that there's little chance of securing a prosecution in the hunt for the mole who passed on details of MPs’ expenses, despite the Commons calling in police. They've been told that the person who duplicated the vast volume of MPs’ invoices and other material had committed a breach of contract but not a criminal offence. Also, it's unlikely there's been a breaching of the data protection legislation. Under Section 55 of the Data Protection Act, the sale of personal information is unlawful unless there is a public interest defence. Lawyers believe the information cannot be deemed personal because the High Court and Information Tribunal ordered its release last year and a strong public interest defence could be argued.

Patrick McLoughlin, the Conservative chief whip in charge of auditing Tory expenses, claimed £3,000 to have new windows fitted at his second home. Steve McCabe, a Labour whip, over-claimed on his mortgage by £4,059. Diana Johnson, Labour assistant whip, spent £1,000 of taxpayers’ money to hire an architect for a decorating project at her second home. Helen Goodman, assistant government whip, claimed for a week’s stay in a holiday cottage in her constituency. (Source: Daily Telegraph, May/09)

Four of Gordon Brown's ministers are exposed for milking the parliamentary MPs' expenses system and pushing their claims to the limit. The Daily Telegraph's files show that Barbara Follett, the Tourism Minister; Phil Woolas, the Immigration Minister; Ben Bradshaw, the Health Minister; and Phil Hope, the Care Services Minister, have exploited the MPs' expenses system.

The questionable expense claims of two former ministers, Keith Vaz and Barry Gardiner, are also disclosed. They come after this newspaper published suspect claims made by 13 members of the Cabinet. The details of their claims has resulted in an outpouring of public anger over the MPs' expenses system with calls for immediate reform.

The Cabinet ministers involved, including Jack Straw and Lord Mandelson, have refused to apologise but instead criticised the parliamentary expenses system. The latest disclosures show that the expenses scandal goes beyond the Cabinet and implicates the entire Government. The Daily Telegraph has been shown details of expense claims made by MPs from all the main political parties and is planning to publish a series of articles exposing how the system is being exploited by dozens of MPs.

Parliamentary rules stipulate that MPs must ensure that there are "no grounds for a suggestion of a misuse of public money". However, The Daily Telegraph files show some ministers have pushed the limits of the scheme.

• Barbara Follett, the multi-millionaire Tourism Minister, claimed for private security patrols outside her London home costing more than £25,000. The parliamentary fees office, which is supposed to monitor claims, warned Mrs Follett that her claims may appear "excessive" if made public, but she was not deterred, saying she felt unsafe in Soho after being mugged.

• Keith Vaz, the former minister who now chairs the Home Affairs select committee, bought and furnished a flat in central London at taxpayers' expense despite living just 12 miles away with his wife in a £1.15 million property. He claimed more than £75,000 for the flat. Mr Vaz also changed his designated second home for a single year to a property he owns in his Leicester constituency. During this year, 2007-08, he claimed £1,000 for a table and chairs, £750 on new carpets, and £2,614 for a pair of leather armchairs. He also claimed for 22 cushions, including 17 made from silk costing £15 each. During the course of the year he rented out his London flat.

• Margaret Moran, the Labour MP for Luton, spent £22,500 of taxpayers' money treating dry rot at her and her husband's seaside house 100 miles from her constituency, days after switching her "second home" there. The parliamentary authorities were concerned that the work broke the "spirit" of the rules. However, the MP's claim was not blocked. Miss Moran's expenses appear to be among the most questionable of any MP. Over four years she also spent thousands of pounds on three separate properties, switching between Westminster, Luton and Southampton and renovating each home in turn.

• Phil Hope, the Care Services Minister, has spent more than £37,000 on refurbishing and furnishing a modest two-bedroom flat in south London.

• Ben Bradshaw, the Health Minister, switched the designation of his second home to a property he shares with his partner in west London. Although the couple initially split the mortgage costs, Mr Bradshaw now claims the entire interest bill on the property, despite owning only half the property.

• Phil Woolas, the Home Office Minister, claimed for items of women's clothing, tampons and nappies. The parliamentary rules only allow expenses which are "exclusively" for MPs' own use so it is not clear these items were justified.

• Greg Barker, the shadow climate change minister, made £320,000 after buying a flat with the help of taxpayers' money, and selling it after only 27 months. He is the first senior Tory to become embroiled in the expenses row, but details of other prominent Conservatives will be disclosed in coming days.

• Barry Gardiner, the former environment minister, made a profit of almost £200,000 after buying a Westminster flat and claiming thousands of pounds to renovate the property. Mr Gardiner's main home is only eight miles from Parliament.

Also ...

• Douglas Alexander: spent more than £30,000 doing up his constituency home, which then suffered damage in a house fire.

• Margaret Beckett: £600 claim for hanging baskets and pot plants.

• Gordon Brown: house swap let him claim thousands.

• Andy Burnham: had an eight-month battle with the fees office after making a single expenses claim for more than £16,500.

• Alistair Darling: stamp duty paid by public.

• Caroline Flint: claimed £14,000 for fees for new flat.

• Geoff Hoon: established a property empire worth £1.7 million after claiming taxpayer-funded expenses for at least two properties.

• Lord Mandelson: questions over timing of his house claim.

• David Miliband: spending challenged by his gardener.

• Shaun Woodward: millionaire minister received £100,000 to help pay mortgage. (Source: Daily Telegraph, May/09)

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