Sunday, May 10, 2009

Those expenses again!

Did a Tory member leak the MP expenses?

Lord Naseby, a Conservative peer and former deputy speaker, said that the standing of Parliament had been brought “right down into the pits” and there may be a need for an immediate general election.


Michael Gove, the shadow education secretary, spent more than £7,000 in five months furnishing a London property in 2006 before “flipping” his second home designation to a new property he bought in Surrey. He then claimed more than £13,000 in stamp duty and other fees from his Parliamentary expenses for this property. Mr Gove’s behaviour surprised colleagues because the former journalist was only elected in 2005 and is close to Mr Cameron.

Andrew Lansley, the shadow health secretary, spent thousands of pounds renovating a thatched Tudor country cottage shortly before selling it. He redecorated inside and out with premium paint at a cost of £2,000 and re-shingled the driveway. He then “flipped” his expenses to a Georgian flat in London where he claimed for thousands of pounds in furnishings including a Laura Ashley sofa.

Francis Maude, the shadow minister for the cabinet office, attempted to claim the mortgage interest on his family home in Sussex. This arrangement was rejected by the Fees Office. Two years later, Mr Maude bought a flat in London a few minutes walk from a house he already owned. He then rented out the other property and began claiming on the new flat: the taxpayer has since covered nearly £35,000 in mortgage interest payments.

Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, claimed thousands of pounds to renovate a London flat 17 miles from his family home. Mr Grayling already owned three properties within the M25 but still bought the flat with loans subsidised by the taxpayer. He then claimed for work on the property for up to a year after it was carried out. This enabled him to claim close to the maximum amount allowable under the expenses system during different years.

Cheryl Gillan, the shadow Welsh secretary, claimed for dog food on her expenses. Last night, she said that she would repay the money.

Not all members of the shadow Cabinet were implicated. Mr Cameron and William Hague, his deputy and shadow foreign secretary, both had relatively straightforward claims. George Osborne, the shadow chancellor, claimed for a chauffeur using his office allowance.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5305293/David-Camerons-shadow-cabinet-drawn-into-expenses-scandal-MPs-expenses.html

NWN:
Cameron doesn't need to steal from taxpayers. Cameron was educated at Eaton and has a personal fortune of £31 million. You don't get more distant from the working class than that!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

http://www.rense.com/general85/pedd.htm

Anonymous said...

http://www.rense.com/general85/mill.htm

Anonymous said...

ANOTHER FIDDLER!!

Purple Aki given 18,months inprisonment at Liverpool Crown Court.

Purging the Cyclops said...

Nor indeed more removed from the working class than a public schoolboy and Cambridge educated lawyer... like Nick Gri££in!!!!!

Has he ever apologised for skimming funds for his extension at Y Gribin?

Or opened the books of the Trafalgar Club for public scrutiny?

richard chadfield said...

All politicians are corrupt,shameless liars and until such time as money is taken out of politics it will remain so. Corrupt: they are in politics purely for their own material advancement.They have no guenine beliefs and have zero concern about their constituents. Shameless liars: when exposed they wriggle and squirm to get out of the light and twist the meaning of words and the law to excuse their behaviour. And always they say 'it is not a resigning matter'. And always the public does nothing deeming them too mighty to challenge and topple. Corruption is like a fungle rot in timber. It ultimatley utterley distroys the fabric within which it lives and thereby destroys its'self. The fabric within which the corrupt politicians live is our society.
Now a few more thoughts.
1) No politician should be allowed to claim expenses. Here is my 'just made up idea of how it should work'.
a)MP's should not be revered but seen as what they are --workers on a workers wage. (and the servants of their constituents)
b) as above an MP being a worker should receive the average national wage as a salary. No more.
c) There should be no second homes. Those MP's who live within commuting distence of Westminster shell receive a state paid for rail ticket. (They are just workers commuting to their work place like millions of other workers.)
d) For those MP's whose constituencies (and therefore one hopes first homes) are not within commuting distence the state will provide a modest home within easy distence of Westminster for the period of his/her office. This home will be the property of the state , will be furnished and maintained by the state to standards set by the state and will,of course, be returned to the state when the occupier ceases to be an MP.
e) An MP shell be 'given' staff. No more family staff. An Mp will not be able to make any claim for staff.
d) Should an MP have a guenuine reason to travel(beyond returning to his/her constituency) he/she will ,in good time, notify a yet to be created parliamentary committee who will issue him/her with a return rail,air ticket. The same committee will book him/her any necessary hotal accommadation.
There will be no more submitting claims.
What we have got in our parliament at this moment is a lot of second and third rate individuals who would never make it in industry (is there any left after their destructions?) or commerce. (Banktupt banks ) They are corrupt incompatants. It is time to see them for what they are and to get rid of them.
End of rant.
Richard Chadfield