UK claims scam: 392 MPs told to repay funds
Source: Agencies |
February 5, 2010, Friday
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MORE than half the lawmakers in Britain's House of Commons made excessive or bogus expense claims, an auditor reported yesterday after investigating a scandal that tarnished British politics.
Thomas Legg, appointed after legislators' leaked claims caused an uproar, said 392 of the 752 current and former House of Commons legislators have been asked to repay funds, including Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The total to be repaid is 1.12 million pounds (US$1.7 million).
He said a "culture of deference" and a "prevailing lack of transparency" created the scandal, because officials in Parliament whose job it was to check expense claims were too timid to overrule lawmakers' wild demands.
Procedures that allowed lawmakers to fund expensive second homes were "deeply flawed - in particular, the rules were vague," Legg said, adding there was a "widespread lack of proper evidence" to support the lawmakers' claims.
The exposure of lawmakers' expense claims showed how legislators manipulated housing rules for profit and attempted to bill the public for items, including porn movies, horse manure and a duck house. One legislator demanded reimbursement for cleaning the moat surrounding his country mansion.
The scandal - which touched every political party - provoked deep anger in Britain, coming as voters struggled with a daunting recession and rising unemployment. Brown saw nine ministers quit and suffered heavy losses in local and European elections as voters deserted mainstream parties.
Six lawmakers are being investigated by police over their claims and could face prosecution.
Two members of parliament have been ousted over their claims and about 150 other MPs are not running in the next national election - which must be held by June - as a result of the furor.
Details were disclosed only after a five-year freedom of information campaign and repeated attempts by Parliament to use British courts to block their release.
Legg initially ordered lawmakers to pay back a total of 1.3 million pounds, but the amount was reduced to 1.12 million following successful appeals by 44 lawmakers. Brown was ordered to repay 13,000 pounds, mostly in excessive claims for a maid.
His report showed that Barbara Follett, a lawmaker with the governing Labour Party and wife of novelist Ken Follett, repaid the highest amount of any legislator - 42,458 pounds wrongly claimed for security patrols, CCTV monitors and a burglar alarm.
Nick Clegg, leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat party, said Legg's report should mark the end of "the rotten system of expenses we had in the past."
While House of Commons lawmakers claim an average of 135,000 pounds a year in expense payments, the US Congress allots each House and Senate office between US$1.4 million and US$1.9 million to cover expenses.
Thomas Legg, appointed after legislators' leaked claims caused an uproar, said 392 of the 752 current and former House of Commons legislators have been asked to repay funds, including Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The total to be repaid is 1.12 million pounds (US$1.7 million).
He said a "culture of deference" and a "prevailing lack of transparency" created the scandal, because officials in Parliament whose job it was to check expense claims were too timid to overrule lawmakers' wild demands.
Procedures that allowed lawmakers to fund expensive second homes were "deeply flawed - in particular, the rules were vague," Legg said, adding there was a "widespread lack of proper evidence" to support the lawmakers' claims.
The exposure of lawmakers' expense claims showed how legislators manipulated housing rules for profit and attempted to bill the public for items, including porn movies, horse manure and a duck house. One legislator demanded reimbursement for cleaning the moat surrounding his country mansion.
The scandal - which touched every political party - provoked deep anger in Britain, coming as voters struggled with a daunting recession and rising unemployment. Brown saw nine ministers quit and suffered heavy losses in local and European elections as voters deserted mainstream parties.
Six lawmakers are being investigated by police over their claims and could face prosecution.
Two members of parliament have been ousted over their claims and about 150 other MPs are not running in the next national election - which must be held by June - as a result of the furor.
Details were disclosed only after a five-year freedom of information campaign and repeated attempts by Parliament to use British courts to block their release.
Legg initially ordered lawmakers to pay back a total of 1.3 million pounds, but the amount was reduced to 1.12 million following successful appeals by 44 lawmakers. Brown was ordered to repay 13,000 pounds, mostly in excessive claims for a maid.
His report showed that Barbara Follett, a lawmaker with the governing Labour Party and wife of novelist Ken Follett, repaid the highest amount of any legislator - 42,458 pounds wrongly claimed for security patrols, CCTV monitors and a burglar alarm.
Nick Clegg, leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat party, said Legg's report should mark the end of "the rotten system of expenses we had in the past."
While House of Commons lawmakers claim an average of 135,000 pounds a year in expense payments, the US Congress allots each House and Senate office between US$1.4 million and US$1.9 million to cover expenses.
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