![Palace of Westminster](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Palace_of_Westminster.jpg)
The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major
political scandal
In politics, a political scandal is an action or event regarded as morally or legally wrong and causing general public outrage. Politicians, government officials, party officials and lobbyists can be accused of various illegal, corrupt, unethic ...
that emerged in 2009, concerning expenses claims made by members of the
British Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...
in both the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
and the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
over the previous years. The disclosure of widespread misuse of
allowances and
expenses
An expense is an item requiring an outflow of money, or any form of fortune in general, to another person or group as payment for an item, service, or other category of costs. For a tenant, rent is an expense. For students or parents, tuition is a ...
permitted to
Members of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MPs) aroused widespread anger among the UK public and resulted in a large number of resignations, sackings, de-selections and retirement announcements together with public apologies and the repayment of expenses. Several members or former members of both the House of Commons, and members of the House of Lords, were prosecuted and sentenced to terms of imprisonment.
A February 2008
Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request:
* Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act
* ...
request for the release of details of MPs' expenses claims was allowed by an
Information Tribunal
The Information Tribunal was a tribunal non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom. It was established as the Data Protection Tribunal to hear appeals under the Data Protection Act 1984. Its name was changed to reflect its wider responsi ...
but challenged by the House of Commons Authorities on the grounds that it was "unlawfully intrusive". In May 2008 the
High Court (England and Wales) ruled in favour of releasing the information.
['' Corporate Officer of the House of Commons v Information Commissioner'' EWHC_1084_(Admin)]
/ref>_In_April_2009_the_House_of_Commons_authorities_announced_that_publication_of_expenses,_with_certain_information_deemed_"sensitive"_removed,_would_be_made_in_July_2009._But_before_this_could_take_place_the_expenses_records_and_documentation_were_News_leak.html" ;"title="008
EWHC 1084 (Admin)/ref> In April 2009 the House of Commons authorities announced that publication of expenses, with certain information deemed "sensitive" removed,
would be made in July 2009. But before this could take place the expenses records and documentation were News leak">leaked to ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' newspaper, which began publishing details in daily instalments from 8 May 2009. These disclosures dominated the British media for weeks. On 18 June 2009 the details of all MPs' expenses and allowance claims approved from 2004 to 2008 were published on the official Parliament website with detail such as addresses, claims that were not approved for payment and correspondence between MPs and the parliamentary fees office removed, bringing further accusations of unnecessary secrecy and allegations that this might have prevented serious abuses from being disclosed.
Since most claims revolved around MPs' second homes in London, a panel was established to investigate all claims relating to the "second homes" allowance between 2004 and 2008. Headed by former civil servant Sir
Thomas Legg
Sir Thomas Stuart Legg (born 13 August 1935) is a British former senior civil servant, who was Permanent Secretary of the Lord Chancellor's Department and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, United Kingdom (1989–98).
Biography
Born in London in ...
, the panel published its findings on 12 October as MPs returned to Westminster following the summer recess. Each MP received a letter stating whether or not he or she would be required to repay any expenses claimed. Details of voluntary repayments by MPs amounting to almost
£500,000 were also officially published.
It was announced on 5 February 2010 that
criminal charges
A criminal charge is a formal accusation made by a governmental authority (usually a public prosecutor or the police) asserting that somebody has committed a crime. A charging document, which contains one or more criminal charges or counts, can ...
of
false accounting False accounting is a legal term for a type of fraud, considered a statutory offence in England and Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
England and Wales
This offence is created by section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 which provides:
...
were to be prosecuted against four parliamentarians, all later jailed. On 19 May charges were brought against two more, on 13 and 14 October 2010 two more faced legal proceedings. Three peers were suspended on 18 October 2010 due to their expenses claims.
Background and legal proceedings
![Heather Brooke May 12](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Heather_Brooke_May_12.jpg)
In the United Kingdom, MPs can claim expenses, including the cost of accommodation, 'wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred for the performance of a Member's parliamentary duties'.
In January 2005 the
Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (c. 36) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that creates a public "right of access" to information held by public authorities. It is the implementation of freedom of information legislation
...
came into force, allowing members of the public to request disclosure of information from public bodies. One early request came from the journalist Jon Ungoed-Thomas. Another request came from journalist and freedom of information campaigner
Heather Brooke
Heather Rose Brooke (born 1970) is a British-American journalist and freedom of information campaigner. Resident since the 1990s in the UK, she helped to expose the 2009 expenses scandal, which culminated in the resignation of House of Common ...
. Both asked for details of the expenses claimed by certain MPs to be released.
The requests were subsequently passed over to the
Information commissioner, who joined the journalists' cases together and ordered the release of some information on 15 June 2007.
House of Commons authorities objected to this order in June 2007 and MPs had, in May 2007, voted in favour of the
Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill
The Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill was a private members bill introduced to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in 2007 which failed to become law after a sponsor for the Bill could not be found in the House of Lords.
Background a ...
which sought to exempt MPs from the 2000 act. The House of Commons voted 96 to 25 in favour of the Exemption of the House of Commons amendment but the bill was ultimately withdrawn prior to a second reading in the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
because peers were unwilling to sponsor the bill.
In February 2008, after referral to an Information Tribunal, it was held that Commons authorities would release information on 14 MPs.
This decision was subsequently appealed against, delaying the release of information.
In the tax year 2007–2008, MPs' costs of staying away from their main homes was limited to £23,083.
In January 2009
Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman (born 30 July 1950) is a British politician and solicitor who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Camberwell and Peckham, formerly Peckham, since 1982. A member of the Labour Party, she has served in various Cabi ...
,
Leader of the House of Commons
The leader of the House of Commons is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom whose main role is organising government business in the House of Commons. The leader is generally a member or attendee of the cabinet of the ...
, tabled a motion which would exempt MPs' expenses from being disclosed under a Freedom of Information request, in order to prevent any further disclosure of information. Labour MPs were placed under a
three line whip
A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology o ...
in order to force the motion through the Commons. However, opposition parties stated they would vote against the proposals, and large-scale public opposition emerged. The proposals were ultimately dropped on 21 January 2009. The Commons authorities announced that full disclosure of all MPs' expenses would be published on 1 July 2009.
Ultimately the media disclosure made the legal appeal moot; the appeal was finally heard at the High Court, which ruled on 16 May 2008 in favour of releasing the information.
No appeal was lodged against the High Court ruling, and the requested details were made public on 23 May 2008.
Pre-publication controversies
Prior to ''The Daily Telegraphs revelations in May and June 2009 and the official publication of expenses claimed in June 2009, and during the Freedom of Information cases, there were a variety of exposés that covered the controversial
John Lewis List The John Lewis List was the name given to the list of expenses that Members of Parliament (MPs) in the United Kingdom could claim before 2010, after which the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) was set up to administer MPs' busine ...
(a list considered to indicate amounts that could be claimed without question) and individual MPs' expenses claims.
Examples of items publicised prior to the May 2009 disclosures included:
*
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
's expenses were shredded 'by mistake' when they were the subject of a legal bid to have them published.
*
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
Derek Conway
Derek Leslie Conway TD (born 15 February 1953) is an English politician and television presenter. A member of the Conservative Party, Conway served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Shrewsbury and Atcham from 1983 to 1997, ...
was alleged in May 2007 to have paid his son, a student at the time, using public funds despite little evidence of his having done the work he was supposed to. The matter was forwarded to the House of Commons'
Standards and Privileges Committee
The Standards and Privileges Committee is a former committee of the United Kingdom House of Commons that existed from 1995 to 2013. The committee was established in 1995 to replace the earlier Committee of Privileges. It consisted of 10 Members of ...
, whose report dated 28 January 2008 concluded there was no record of such work. Conway was suspended for 10 days and ordered to repay £13,000. Conway was also expelled from the party. A second case a year later found he had overpaid with regard to his other son.
*
Chairman of the Conservative Party
The chairman of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom is responsible for party administration and overseeing the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly Conservative Central Office.
When the Conservatives are in government, the offic ...
Caroline Spelman
Dame Caroline Alice Spelman (' Cormack; born 4 May 1958) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Meriden in the West Midlands from 1997 to 2019. From May 2010 to September 2012 she was the Sec ...
was alleged in June 2008 to have paid for her
nanny
A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...
out of parliamentary expenses during her early years in Parliament, between 1997 and 1998
—an allegation that became known as 'Nannygate'. It was ruled that she had inadvertently 'misapplied part of
erparliamentary allowances', but calls for her sacking were rebutted since she might not have been aware of the rules governing the use or purpose of parliamentary allowances. The committee recommended that Spelman repay £9,600.
* Married couple and Labour
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
ministers
Ed Balls
Edward Michael Balls (born 25 February 1967) is a British broadcaster, writer, economist, professor and former politician who served as Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families from 2007 to 2010, and as Shadow Chancellor of the Exc ...
and
Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper (born 20 March 1969) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department, Shadow Home Secretary since 2021, and previously from 2011 to 2015. She served in Gordon Brown's Brown ministry, Cabinet as ...
were accused in September 2007 of exploiting the Commons' allowances system in order to pay for a £655,000 house in London. The complaint, centering on the gain made by allocation of their 'second house', was dismissed since it was held the couple had acted in accordance with parliamentary rules.
* Married Conservative MPs
Sir Nicholas and
Lady Winterton were accused in June 2008 of claiming back mortgage interest on a mortgage they had fully repaid, on a flat they owned in London, and then also placing the flat in
trust
Trust often refers to:
* Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality
It may also refer to:
Business and law
* Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another
* Trust (bus ...
and claiming for the rent on it. It was held there had been a clear breach of the rules, but no repayment was ordered.
* Labour
Home Secretary
The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
Jacqui Smith
Jacqueline Jill Smith (born 3 November 1962) is a British broadcaster, political commentator and former Labour Party politician. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Redditch from 1997 to 2010. She served as Home Secretary from 2007 to 2009 ...
was stated to have claimed for her main home by designating it as a second home, while identifying as her main home a location where she spent as little as two days a week, and despite also having access to a ‘
grace and favour
''Grace & Favour'' (American title: ''Are You Being Served? Again!'') is a British sitcom and a spin-off of ''Are You Being Served?'' that aired on BBC1 for two series from 1992 to 1993. It was written by ''Are You Being Served?'' creators and ...
’ home in Westminster. No investigation was held, however, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards stating there was 'not sufficient evidence for an inquiry'.
* Labour minister
Tony McNulty
Anthony James "Tony" McNulty (born 3 November 1958) is a British politician who was the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Harrow East from 1997 to 2010. During his ministerial career, which began in 2003, he was Minister for London and late ...
admitted claiming expenses for a second home in
Harrow, 8 miles from his main home in
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
...
, and asserted they were appropriate, but ceased claiming the allowances. Under continuing pressure, he apologised to the House for expenses abuses on 29 October 2009.
* Conservative MP
Eric Pickles
Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar (UK Parliament co ...
likewise was identified as claiming for a second home 37 miles from his main home.
Information disclosed by ''The Daily Telegraph''
In May 2009, two months prior to the official disclosure of full expenses claims, ''The Daily Telegraph'' obtained a full copy of all expenses claimed. The ''Telegraph'' began publishing, in instalments from 8 May 2009, certain MPs' expenses. The ''Telegraph'' justified the publication of the information because it contended that the official information due to be released would have omitted key information about re-designating of second-home nominations.
The information in the leaks published by ''The Daily Telegraph'' originated from the parliamentary fees office, and had been offered to other newspaper organisations for more than £150,000. In September 2009, the assistant editor of the ''Telegraph'',
Andrew Pierce
Andrew Pierce (born Patrick Connolly) is a British journalist, editor, author, broadcaster and political commentator.
Early life
Pierce was born in Bristol to a Roman Catholic Irish mother and an unknown father. He spent the first two years o ...
, revealed in an interview that the newspaper had paid £110,000 for the information, and described it as 'money well spent in the public interest'. ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and ''
The Sun'' had turned down an offer to buy the leaked expenses file.
Shortly after the publication of the information, the House of Commons authorities asked the
Metropolitan Police
The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
to investigate. The Police declined, on the grounds that any attempted prosecution might meet with a successful public interest defence.
Areas of abuse
Alongside specific allegations of incorrect claims such as claims for the cost of mortgages which it transpired had already been repaid in full the ''Telegraph'' alleged that parliamentary '
Green Book' expenses rules gave wide scope for a number of abuses, especially those related to costs of maintaining two residences, one in the constituency and one in London. Areas of questionable claims highlighted by the ''Telegraph'' included:
* Nominating second homes: the Green Book states that 'the location of your main home will normally be a matter of fact'. MPs and peers were able to ensure that their second home was the one which enabled them to claim more expenses. In at least one case (
Margaret Moran
Margaret Mary Moran (born 24 April 1955) is a former Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Moran was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South from the 1997 general election to 2010. In November 2012, jurors at Southwark Crown Cou ...
) the nominated home was near neither constituency nor Westminster.
* Re-designating second homes: MPs were able repeatedly to switch the designation of their second home, enabling them to claim for purchasing (e.g.
Stamp duty
Stamp duty is a tax that is levied on single property purchases or documents (including, historically, the majority of legal documents such as cheques, receipts, military commissions, marriage licences and land transactions). A physical revenu ...
), renovating and furnishing more than one property. This practice became widely known as 'flipping'.
* Renting out homes: MPs were able to claim for their 'second home' while they were, in fact, renting other homes out. In most cases the rented homes were 'third' properties, but in Elliott Morley's case, a second home was rented to another MP,
Ian Cawsey
Ian Arthur Cawsey (born 14 April 1960) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brigg and Goole from 1997 until his defeat at the 2010 general election.
Early life and career
He went to Welholme Prim ...
, who was claiming the rent on expenses.
*Over-claiming for council tax on second home: MPs were able to round up actual amounts due, claiming for 12 monthly instalments where only 10 were due or by claiming up to £250.00 per month with no receipt required until those rules were changed. Over 50 MPs were alleged to have over-claimed council tax.
* Subsidising property development: the Green Book rule that MPs could not claim for repairs 'beyond making good dilapidations' was not enforced and consequently MPs were able to add significantly to the value of a property. By implication some 'second homes' were effectively businesses (not homes) since they were renovated on expenses and then rapidly sold.
*
Evading tax and inappropriate attempts at
avoiding tax: MPs either evaded tax, or inappropriately deemed themselves not required to pay tax on reimbursements when it was likely tax was due. This covered two areas:
**
Capital gains tax
A capital gains tax (CGT) is the tax on profits realized on the sale of a non-inventory asset. The most common capital gains are realized from the sale of stocks, Bond (finance), bonds, precious metals, real estate, and property.
Not all count ...
: MPs were able to designate a property as their second home with the parliamentary fees office so as to claim the cost of renovating it on expenses, but a number of MPs had concurrently described a property as their second home to claim expenses, and to the UK tax authority
HM Revenue and Customs
HM Revenue and Customs (His Majesty's Revenue and Customs, or HMRC) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the His Majesty's Government, UK Government responsible fo ...
as their primary residence in order to sell it without capital gains tax. Some also designated a property as a primary or secondary residence for tax or expenses benefits which was apparently little if at all used by them in that role.
**
Income tax
An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
: a number of MPs were criticised for non-payment of income tax for
benefits in kind or for reimbursed expenses considered under UK tax law to be of a personal nature. As of 31 May 2009, some 40 MPs had been identified as claiming for personal expenses such as preparation of their
tax return
A tax return is the completion of documentation that calculates an entity or individual's income earned and the amount of taxes to be paid to the government or government organizations or, potentially, back to the taxpayer.
Taxation is one of ...
s, despite UK tax law and ministerial guidance both of which had stated such expenses were not claimable for tax purposes;
of those claiming, only a minority paid tax on the benefit in kind.
* Claiming expenses while living in
grace and favour
''Grace & Favour'' (American title: ''Are You Being Served? Again!'') is a British sitcom and a spin-off of ''Are You Being Served?'' that aired on BBC1 for two series from 1992 to 1993. It was written by ''Are You Being Served?'' creators and ...
homes: ministers with 'grace and favour' homes in Westminster as well as their existing primary residence were able to claim for a further 'second home' in addition.
* Renovating and furnishing properties when standing down: MPs were able to claim for renovations and furniture even when they had already announced their intention to resign from Parliament.
* Furnishing of other homes: MPs were able to claim for items of furniture that were actually delivered somewhere other than their second home.
* Exploiting the 'no receipt' rule: MPs submitted a large number of claims for just below £250, the ceiling under which they were not required to produce receipts, without being challenged as to their legitimacy.
* Over-claiming for food: under a rule permitting up to £400 for food each month (without receipts), MPs were simply able to claim the whole £400 every month, even when Parliament was not sitting.
* Overspending at the end of the financial year: MPs were able to submit claims just before the end of the financial year, so as to use up allowances, without being challenged as to their legitimacy.
Specific claims
The ''Telegraph'' first revealed expenses of the governing
Labour Party, beginning with the
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
on 8 May 2009, before releasing details of the claims by junior ministers and Labour backbenchers. Further allegations were made on 14 May.
On 11 and 12 May, publication focused on the frontbench of the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
followed by the claims of backbench Conservative MPs whom the newspaper dubbed 'the
grandee
Grandee (; es, Grande de España, ) is an official royal and noble ranks, aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neith ...
s' of the party.
On 12 May, the
Leader of the Opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
,
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, announced that all questionable claims by the
Shadow cabinet would be repaid.
The
Liberal Democrats expenses were revealed last of the three main parties, followed by
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...
members' claims in which it was reported that the five Sinn Féin MPs together had claimed nearly £500,000 in second home allowances, despite never taking up their seats at Westminster due to the party's
abstentionist
Abstentionism is standing for election to a deliberative assembly while refusing to take up any seats won or otherwise participate in the assembly's business. Abstentionism differs from an election boycott in that abstentionists participate in ...
policy.
Sinn Féin stated that its members often have to travel to London on parliamentary business.
The claims published by ''The Daily Telegraph'' ultimately covered the entire gamut of Parliament—all major parties and several minor ones, ministers (including the Prime Minister
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
, the
Chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
, cabinet and
shadow cabinet members) through to
backbench
In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...
ers, and members of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons. A number of members were expelled from their parties, or would not stand for re-election; some members repaid, in part or whole, sums they had previously claimed. Expenses claims to be repaid averaged £3,000. The highest repayment by an MP was £42,458.21 by
Barbara Follett. There were also payments to
the UK tax authority for taxes on possible gains or income previously not paid.
Source of information
Former
SAS officer Major John Wick, the owner of a London-based
risk management company
has been named as the middle-man for an unnamed
whistleblower
A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...
; he has spoken of the need to bring the information he had been given into the public domain. Wick stated that:
Wick went on to explain that following legal advice and review, and soul searching over loyalties, he had felt the matter was of sufficient concern to merit publication in a 'serious newspaper', and following discussions with a number of papers, the ''Telegraph'' had been granted exclusive access to study the material for 10 days from 30 April 2009.
There is an unresolved issue with the data itself, with different numbers being cited by different sources. ''The Daily Telegraph'' stated that 4 million pieces of information existed; ''The Guardian'' stated there were 2 million ("two million documents in all, including copies of expense claim forms, handwritten comments scrawled in margins, even attached sticky notes").
''The Daily Telegraph'' team
''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' had a team of
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
s based in a training room at the ''Telegraph'' offices over
London Victoria station
Victoria station, also known as London Victoria, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Victoria, in the City of Westminster, managed by Network Rail. Named after the nearby Victoria Street (not the Qu ...
. Training Room 4—"tucked off a
dead-end corridor"—became
nickname
A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...
d "the
bunker
A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. ...
."
Robert Winnett's team of
lobby journalists,
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...
editors, reporters, and social affairs
correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...
s, initially composed of Martin Beckford,
Christopher Hope, Rosa Prince, Jon Swaine, and Holly Watt. James Kirkup joined the team once he returned from
jury duty
Jury duty or jury service is service as a juror in a legal proceeding.
Juror selection process
The prosecutor and defense can dismiss potential jurors for various reasons, which can vary from one state to another, and they can have a specific ...
.
The team grew to "more than a
dozen
A dozen (commonly abbreviated doz or dz) is a grouping of twelve.
The dozen may be one of the earliest primitive integer groupings, perhaps because there are approximately a dozen cycles of the Moon, or months, in a cycle of the Sun, or year ...
," as stories were published. Joining the team were a picture researcher and a designer, as well as deputy editor
Tony Gallagher, head of news
Chris Evans, news editor Matt Bailey, and head
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
Arthur Wynn Davies.
Media handling
In May 2009, major national newspapers such as ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' described the resulting controversy as "Parliament's darkest day"
and a "full blown political crisis", reporting upon cross-party firings and resignations, an exodus of shamed MPs,
the prospect of
criminal
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...
and
tax evasion
Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...
charges, and a
motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
being prepared against the
Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** I ...
.
Public interest in the expenses debate led to the 14 May 2009 edition of the BBC political and current affairs television programme ''
Question Time
A question time in a parliament occurs when members of the parliament ask questions of government ministers (including the prime minister), which they are obliged to answer. It usually occurs daily while parliament is sitting, though it can be ca ...
'' recording its highest viewing figures in its 30-year run, of 3.8 million, with audience members heckling guest panellist
Margaret Beckett
Dame Margaret Mary Beckett (''née'' Jackson; born 15 January 1943) is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Derby South since 1983. A member of the Labour Party, she became Britain's first female Foreign S ...
. The following week's edition on 21 May was brought forward for a special edition into the prime time slot of 9 pm
BST.
Nadine Dorries
Nadine Vanessa Dorries (''née'' Bargery, 21 May 1957) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from 2021 to 2022 under Prime Minister Boris Johnson. A member of the Conservative Party, she ...
, a Conservative MP, criticised the ''Telegraphs handling, which she described as "picking off a few MPs each day, emailing at noon, giving five hours to reply, recording the conversation, not allowing them to speak, telling them they are going to publish anyway". She stated that the stress felt by some MPs was akin to "
torture
Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...
". Her comment was rejected by senior Conservatives. (See also
Effect on MPs and on the political structure below)
Impact
A widespread public reaction was heightened as a result of several factors: the incident broke in the face of an
economic recession and financial crisis, under an already unpopular government, only weeks before the
2009 European Parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
s.
Political response
Following the publication of expenses politicians from all parties responded to the controversy.
*
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
, the Prime Minister, during a speech to the
Royal College of Nursing
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is a registered trade union in the United Kingdom for those in the profession of nursing. It was founded in 1916, receiving its royal charter in 1928. Queen Elizabeth II was the patron until her death in 2022. ...
Conference on 11 May, apologised "on behalf of all politicians" for the expenses claims that had been made.
*
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, the Leader of the Opposition, said that all MPs should apologise for the expenses scandal, shortly after the ''Telegraph'' published the claims of members of the Shadow Cabinet. Cameron also admitted that the existing system "was wrong and we're sorry about it". The following day, 12 May, Cameron said that some of the claims made were "unethical and wrong", and imposed new rules on what Conservative MPs could claim for in the future.
[
* Michael Martin, the Commons Speaker made a statement to MPs on 11 May, the first sitting of the Commons since the ''Daily Telegraph'' began publishing specific details of individual claims. Martin said that "serious change" was required in the future and that, in the present, MPs should not just work within the rules, an explanation that many accused MPs had given in their defence, but rather in "the spirit of what is right". The Speaker also announced that a new 'Operational Assurance Unit' would be set up to independently oversee all claims, and that the ]House of Commons Commission
The House of Commons Commission is the overall supervisory body of the House of Commons Administration in the United Kingdom. The Commission is a corporate body established by the House of Commons (Administration) Act 1978 (c.36). The Commission c ...
would meet that evening to discuss whether or not to bring forward the official expenses publication date from 1 July.
**In the aftermath of the Speaker's statement to MPs, questions were widely raised regarding Martin's future in the job, largely due to his focusing on the actual leak of information, rather than the expenses themselves, and due to his response to the point of order
In parliamentary procedure, a point of order occurs when someone draws attention to a rules violation in a meeting of a deliberative assembly.
Explanation and uses
In ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'' (RONR), a point of order may be rai ...
raised by the Labour MP Kate Hoey
Catharine Letitia Hoey, Baroness Hoey (born 21 June 1946), better known as Kate Hoey, is a Northern Irish politician and life peer who served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Home Affairs from 1998 to 1999 and Minister for Sport from 1999 ...
, who suggested that the Speaker and Commons' decision to call in the police was "an awful waste of resources". A Conservative MP, Douglas Carswell
John Douglas Wilson Carswell (born 3 May 1971) is a British former politician who served as a Member of Parliament from 2005 to 2017, co-founded Vote Leave and currently serves as president and CEO of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.
...
, subsequently announced that he planned to table a motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
in the Speaker, if he could garner sufficient support.
*Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman (born 30 July 1950) is a British politician and solicitor who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Camberwell and Peckham, formerly Peckham, since 1982. A member of the Labour Party, she has served in various Cabi ...
, the Leader of the House of Commons
The leader of the House of Commons is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom whose main role is organising government business in the House of Commons. The leader is generally a member or attendee of the cabinet of the ...
, asked Don Touhig
James Donnelly Touhig, Baron Touhig (born 5 December 1947), known as Don Touhig, is a British politician and life peer who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Islwyn from 1995 to 2010. A member of the Labour and Co-operative parties, he se ...
, the Chairman of the Members' Allowance Committee, to devise a method for MPs to repay any excessive expenses.
*Ben Bradshaw
Benjamin Peter James Bradshaw (born 30 August 1960) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport from 2009 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Exeter since 1 ...
, Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...
in the Department of Health
A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...
, raised the spectre of MPs being sent to prison for abusing the expenses system.
*William Hague
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
, Shadow Foreign Secretary
In UK politics, the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs is a position within the opposition's shadow cabinet that deals mainly with issues surrounding the Foreign Office. If elected, the person serving as ...
and a senior member of the Shadow Cabinet (Deputy to party leader David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
), also suggested that a number of MPs may face criminal prosecution after details of their claims were disclosed.[
*]Lord Tebbit
Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit (born 29 March 1931) is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment (1981–1983), Secretary of State for Trade ...
, a Eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...
and former Chairman of the Conservative Party, urged voters to snub the main three political parties in the upcoming EU Parliament election. Tebbit, who in March 2009 said that he would vote for the UK Independence Party
The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest par ...
(UKIP), said "Local elections, the Great British public should just treat as normal" but suggested using the European election to send a message to the implicated parties. Tebbit pointed out that there were a series of smaller parties people could vote for in addition to UKIP, including the Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...
, but he urged against voting for the British National Party
The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...
.
* Lord Foulkes, when being interviewed for BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...
by Carrie Gracie
Carrie Gracie (born 1962)Ben Dowel"Carrie Gracie profile: Award-winning journalist with years at World Service" theguardian.com, 12 May 2009 is a Scottish journalist and newsreader best known as having been China Editor for BBC News.
She resig ...
to defend Michael Martin, asked Gracie how much money she earned. When she said she earned £92,000, Foulkes said: "£92,000? So you're paid nearly twice as much as an MP to come on and talk this nonsense." Gracie defended herself by saying that she paid for all of her phone calls and "understood what public sector money is about".
*Anthony Steen
Anthony David Steen CBE (born 22 July 1939) is a former British Conservative Party politician and barrister. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1974 to 2010, and the Chairman of the Human Trafficking Foundation. Having represented Totnes i ...
, Conservative MP for Totnes, told BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
's The World at One
''The World at One'', or ''WATO'' ("what-oh") for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, produced by BBC News, which is currently broadcast from 13:00 to 13:45 from Monday to Friday. The programme de ...
that he 'didn't see what all the fuss is about,' and suggested that the public were 'jealous' of his house that he compared to Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle () is a large estate house in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and a residence of the British royal family. It is near the village of Crathie, west of Ballater and west of Aberdeen.
The estate and its original castle were bought ...
, the Royal residence. David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, Conservative party leader, disapproved strongly of his statement, saying, 'One more squeak like that and he will have the whip taken away from him so fast his feet won't touch the ground.'. As a result of his involvement in the scandal, he declined to contest the next general election.
Resignations and disciplinary action
Resignation of the Speaker
The resignation of Michael Martin, Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings.
Systems that have such a position include:
* Speaker of ...
, followed after he was pressured to step down for approving the allowances system that MPs have manipulated with questionable claims of expenses. The pressure and viable threats of a proposed vote of no confidence in Martin ultimately forced his resignation. Michael Martin's response to the handling of the expense crisis was not well received by the majority of the House. He attacked MPs in Parliament who defended ''The Daily Telegraph'' for publishing details of expenses and allowances. Martin then concluded his part in the debate over how to handle the expense scandal, by announcing that the Commons clerk had referred the matter of the leaked information to the Metropolitan Police Commissioner. Overall, Martin appeared to be more concerned with the nature of the leak of the information, which led to the ''Telegraphs publishing details of MPs' expenses and allowances, rather than offering an anticipated apology or explanation.
The majority of the MPs felt Martin's defensive approach and attacks on various MPs as whistleblowers and the backbenchers was a clear indication that Martin was no longer able to lead the House with the required impartiality. MPs from his own majority party, Labour, and the minority opposition party, the Conservatives, felt he had lost the confidence of the public and the House in general. Martin was the first Speaker to be forced out of the office by a motion of no confidence since John Trevor in 1695. Despite apologising to the public on behalf of the House of Commons on 18 May, Martin announced his resignation as Speaker of the House of Commons and as Member of Parliament for Glasgow North East
Glasgow North East is a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (at Westminster). It was first contested at the 2005 general election. The current Member of Parliament (MP) is Anne McLaughlin of the ...
the following day, both effective 21 June.
Cabinet and Ministerial resignations
*Jacqui Smith
Jacqueline Jill Smith (born 3 November 1962) is a British broadcaster, political commentator and former Labour Party politician. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Redditch from 1997 to 2010. She served as Home Secretary from 2007 to 2009 ...
announced that she would step down as Home Secretary
The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
after the European elections, but would contest her seat at the next election. She lost her seat to a Conservative.
*Hazel Blears
Hazel Anne Blears (born 14 May 1956) is a former British Labour Party politician, who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Salford and Eccles, previously Salford, from 1997 to 2015.
One of 101 female Labour MPs elected at the 1997 gen ...
announced on 3 June that she would step down as Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
.
*Tony McNulty
Anthony James "Tony" McNulty (born 3 November 1958) is a British politician who was the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Harrow East from 1997 to 2010. During his ministerial career, which began in 2003, he was Minister for London and late ...
resigned from his position as Minister for Employment
, type = Department
, seal =
, logo = Department for Work and Pensions logo.svg
, logo_width = 166px
, formed =
, preceding1 =
, jurisdiction = Government of the United Kingdom
, headquarters = Caxton House7th Floor6–12 Tothill Stree ...
during the cabinet reshuffle
A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...
on 5 June 2009. He lost his seat at the subsequent general election.
*Geoff Hoon
Geoffrey William Hoon (born 6 December 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashfield in Nottinghamshire from 1992 to 2010. He is a former Defence Secretary, Transport Secretary, Leader of ...
left his position as Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport, also referred to as the transport secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the policies of the Department for Transport. The incumbent i ...
during the cabinet reshuffle on 5 June 2009, in order for him to spend more time on European and international issues with him being considered a possible candidate as the next British member of the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
. He did not stand at the 2010 election.
*Kitty Ussher
Katharine Anne Ussher (born 18 March 1971) is a British economist, former Labour Party MP and Treasury minister, and former Chief Executive of the Demos think tank, who is now chief economist at the Institute of Directors. She is also a Non E ...
resigned as Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury
The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury is a junior ministerial post in HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury, ranked below the First Lord of the Treasury, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Paymaster General ...
on 17 June, after only 8 days in the position, following details of avoiding capital gains tax being published. She did not stand at the 2010 election.
*David Laws
David Anthony Laws (born 30 November 1965) is a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Yeovil from 2001 to 2015. A member of the Liberal Democrats, in his third parliament he served at the outset as a Cabinet Mini ...
was the last to resign from the cabinet for expenses related issues, one year after the other cabinet resignations. A Liberal Democrat frontbencher appointed to the position of Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The chief secretary to the Treasury is a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom. The office is the second most senior in the Treasury, after the chancellor of the Exchequer. The office was created in 1961, to share the burden ...
after the 2010 general election, he resigned 16 days later when the ''Telegraph'' reported that he had claimed over £40,000 on his expenses in the form of second home costs, from 2004 to late 2009, during which time he had been renting rooms at properties owned by his long-term partner, James Lundie.
Labour backbenchers
The Labour Party formed a three-person panel of its National Executive Committee National Executive Committee is the name of a leadership body in several organizations, mostly political parties:
* National Executive Committee of the African National Congress, in South Africa
* Australian Labor Party National Executive
* Nationa ...
(NEC) in order to investigate some of its MPs who were referred to it over expenses allegations, which quickly became known as the "Star Chamber
The Star Chamber (Latin: ''Camera stellata'') was an English court that sat at the royal Palace of Westminster, from the late to the mid-17th century (c. 1641), and was composed of Privy Counsellors and common-law judges, to supplement the judic ...
" (a reference to the court of the same name employed by English monarchs
This list of kings and reigning queens of the Kingdom of England begins with Alfred the Great, who initially ruled Wessex, one of the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which later made up modern England. Alfred styled himself King of the Anglo-Sax ...
to dispense summary justice in the 16th and 17th centuries). Individual cases (in alphabetical order) include:
* Ben Chapman announced on 21 May 2009 that he would stand down at the next election, while maintaining that he had done nothing wrong; he said he would resign because the story in the ''Telegraph'' had been hurtful to his family, friends and local party members. He was the first Labour MP who announced he would stand down.
*David Chaytor
David Michael Chaytor (born 3 August 1949) is a former British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury North from 1997 to 2010. He was the first member of Parliament to be sentenced following the United Kingdom ...
announced that he would not stand for re-election, and was also barred from standing for Labour at the next general election. Charged with three alleged offences under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968
The Theft Act 1968c 60 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of offences against property in England and Wales.
On 15 January 2007 the Fraud Act 2006 came into force, redefining most of the offences of deceptio ...
("false accounting"), on 3 December 2010 he pleaded guilty to claiming rent for a house he in fact owned, using a fake tenancy agreement with his daughter. He was sentenced on 7 January 2011 to an 18-month jail sentence. His sentence may have been more lenient than the maximum seven years because of his guilty plea.
*Harry Cohen
Harry Michael Cohen (born 10 December 1949) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton from 1983 to 1997 and Leyton and Wanstead from 1997 to 2010.
Early life
Cohen left the George Gascoigne Secon ...
announced he would not stand for re-election. He said the strain caused by the criticism over his expenses, and the formal investigation into his claims, were the main factors behind his departure. He was subsequently barred from receiving his MP's resettlement grant, after being censured for his claims on a second home.
*Jim Devine
James Devine (born 21 May 1953) is a former Member of Parliament. He was the Labour Party member for Livingston from 2005 until 2010 and Chairman of the Scottish Labour Party between 1994 and 1995.
On 16 June 2009, following the 2009 expenses ...
was deselected on 16 June following a disciplinary hearing by the Labour party "star chamber". He had been charged with two alleged offences under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 ("false accounting"). He was duly convicted of two charges of false accounting and on 31 March 2011 was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment
* Ian Gibson was also barred from representing Labour at the next general election and de-selected. He was said to be "deeply disappointed". On 5 June, Gibson announced his resignation
Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
as an MP, forcing a by-election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
to be held in his Norwich North constituency on 23 July 2009, which Labour went on to lose to the Conservatives.
*Eric Illsley
Eric Evlyn Illsley (born 9 April 1955) is a former British Labour politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Barnsley Central from 1987 until 2011. He was a Labour Party representative until suspended from the party after being char ...
on 8 February 2011, announced his resignation
Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
as an MP, forcing a by-election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
to be held in his Barnsley Central constituency, after pleading guilty to charges of false accounting. He was later jailed.
*Denis MacShane
Denis MacShane (born Josef Denis Matyjaszek; 21 May 1948) is a British former politician, author and commentator who served as Minister of State for Europe from 2002 to 2005. He joined the Labour Party in 1970 and has held most party offices. ...
on 5 November 2012, announced his resignation
Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
as an MP, forcing a by-election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
to be held in his Rotherham constituency, following a recommendation from the Standards and Privileges Committee
The Standards and Privileges Committee is a former committee of the United Kingdom House of Commons that existed from 1995 to 2013. The committee was established in 1995 to replace the earlier Committee of Privileges. It consisted of 10 Members of ...
that he be suspended for 12 months for submitting false expenses invoices. He was later jailed.
*Anne Moffat
Anne Moffat (born 30 March 1958) is a Scottish Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for East Lothian from 2001 to 2010. She was deselected by her Constituency Labour Party and replaced by Fiona O'Donnell.
Early li ...
on 22 January 2010, Moffat was deselected by her East Lothian constituency party, over her travel expenses.
*Margaret Moran
Margaret Mary Moran (born 24 April 1955) is a former Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Moran was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South from the 1997 general election to 2010. In November 2012, jurors at Southwark Crown Cou ...
decided not to contest the next election, and was also barred from standing for Labour. On 13 October 2010, the ''Telegraph'' reported that Moran would be prosecuted over her expenses. In 2012, Moran was declared unfit to stand trial due her mental health, which was profoundly affected by the scandal.
*Elliot Morley
Elliot Anthony Morley (born 6 July 1952) is a British former Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glanford and Scunthorpe from 1987 to 1997 and then Scunthorpe from 1997 to 2010. In 2009, he was accused by ''The D ...
announced on 29 May that he would not stand for re-election, and was also barred from standing for Labour at the next general election by the NEC's "star chamber". He was charged with two alleged offences under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 ("false accounting"). On 7 April 2011, Morley pleaded guilty to two counts of false accounting, and on 20 May 2011, was sentenced to 16 months' imprisonment.
Conservatives
* On 14 May, Andrew MacKay
Andrew James MacKay (born 27 August 1949) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Stechford from 1977 to 1979, East Berkshire from 1983 to 1997 and for Bracknell in Berkshire fro ...
, the Conservative MP for Bracknell
Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Bracknell Forest, Borough of Bracknell Forest. It l ...
, resigned as parliamentary aide to David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
over what he described as "unacceptable" expenses claims made by him. Subsequently, he decided to stand down at the next general election. His wife, Julie Kirkbride
Julie Kirkbride (born 5 June 1960) is a British Conservative politician. She was the Member of Parliament for the Conservative stronghold of Bromsgrove from the 1997 to the 2010 general elections.
Early life
Kirkbride was born in Halifax, We ...
, who represented Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
, decided on 28 May 2009 that she too would not stand at the next general election.
*Douglas Hogg
Douglas Martin Hogg, 3rd Viscount Hailsham, Baron Hailsham of Kettlethorpe (born 5 February 1945), is a British politician and barrister. A member of the Conservative Party he served in the Cabinet as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Foo ...
announced on 19 May that he would retire from Parliament at the next general election.
*Anthony Steen
Anthony David Steen CBE (born 22 July 1939) is a former British Conservative Party politician and barrister. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1974 to 2010, and the Chairman of the Human Trafficking Foundation. Having represented Totnes i ...
announced on 20 May that he would retire from Parliament at the next general election.
* Sir Peter Viggers announced on 20 May that he would retire from Parliament at the next general election.
*Husband and wife Conservative backbenchers Sir Nicholas and Lady Ann Winterton announced their intention to stand down at the next election.
*Christopher Fraser
Christopher James Fraser, OBE (born 25 October 1962) is a former British Conservative Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Dorset and North Poole from the 1997 general election to 2001 and South West Norfolk from 20 ...
stated he would stand down to "care for his ill wife".
* Ian Taylor announced he would retire at the next general election although not because of the expenses issue (see link below). He had been claiming and had openly declared the maximum allowed for a second home allowance for a London home for four years between 2003 and 2008. His main residence was near Guildford
Guildford ()
is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...
in West Horsley
West Horsley is a semi-rural village between Guildford and Leatherhead in Surrey, England. It lies on the A246, and south of the M25 and the A3. Its civil parish ascends to an ancient woodland Sheepleas Woods which are on the northern downsl ...
.
Peers
* Amir Bhatia, Baron Bhatia
Amirali Alibhai "Amir" Bhatia, Baron Bhatia, (born 18 March 1932) is a British businessman and politician.
Background
An Ismaili Muslim born in East Africa, Bhatia was educated in schools in Tanzania and India. He is married to Nurbanu Ame ...
was suspended from the House of Lords for eight months and told to repay £27,446.
* Anthony Clarke admitted that he "fiddled" his expenses to make up for not being paid a salary.
* Paul White, Baron Hanningfield
Paul Edward Winston White, Baron Hanningfield (born 16 September 1940) is a British politician and a member of the House of Lords. He served in various leadership roles in local government as a Conservative and was influential in the establishm ...
was charged with two alleged offences under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968
The Theft Act 1968c 60 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of offences against property in England and Wales.
On 15 January 2007 the Fraud Act 2006 came into force, redefining most of the offences of deceptio ...
("false accounting"). He stepped down from his frontbench
In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then kno ...
role on learning of the charges on 5 February 2010. On 26 May 2011, Lord Hanningfield was found guilty on six counts, and on 1 July 2011, was sentenced to 9 months' imprisonment.
* Swraj Paul, Baron Paul
Swraj Paul, Baron Paul, (born 18 February 1931) is an Indian-born British business magnate and philanthropist. In 1996 he was appointed a life peer by Conservative Prime Minister John Major, and sits in the House of Lords as a crossbencher wi ...
was suspended from the House of Lords for four months and ordered to pay back £41,982.
* John Taylor, Baron Taylor of Warwick
John David Beckett Taylor, Baron Taylor of Warwick (born 21 September 1952) is a member of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. His full title is "The Lord Taylor of Warwick". In 1996, at the age of 44, he became one of th ...
pleaded not guilty to six charges of false accounting, but was convicted on 25 January 2011, and on 31 May 2011, was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment.
*Glenys Thornton, Baroness Thornton
Dorothea Glenys Thornton, Baroness Thornton (born 16 October 1952), known as Glenys Thornton, is a Labour and Co-operative politician serving as a Member of the House of Lords since 1998. She was a Government Whip in 2008 to 2010 and a Parliament ...
has also been implicated in this controversy, having been reported to be claiming £22,000 a year in expenses by saying that her mother's bungalow in Yorkshire is her main home, amounting to around £130,000 since 2002. She was later cleared of any wrongdoing by Michael Pownall, the Clerk of Parliaments, after it was determined that she spent much of her time there while caring for her mother.
* Pola Uddin, Baroness Uddin
Manzila Pola Khan Uddin, Baroness Uddin, ( bn, মানযিলা পলা উদ্দিন খান; Romanized: ''Manzila Pôla Uddin''; born 17 July 1959) is a British non-affiliated life peer and community activist of Bangladeshi d ...
faced a police investigation for alleged fraud for claiming at least £180,000 in expenses by designating an empty flat, and previously an allegedly non-existent property as her main residence. She was suspended from the House of Lords until the end of 2012 and told to repay £125,349.
Creation of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)
On 20 May 2009 Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman (born 30 July 1950) is a British politician and solicitor who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Camberwell and Peckham, formerly Peckham, since 1982. A member of the Labour Party, she has served in various Cabi ...
announced the creation of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) is a public body in the United Kingdom created by the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009, largely as a response to the parliamentary expenses scandal of 2009. It establishes and monitors the ...
, intended to manage Members' expenses at an "arm's length" from the House, ending the historical self-policing by MPs of their expenses. The IPSA will be responsible for: paying MPs' annual salaries; drawing up, reviewing, and administering an MPs' allowances scheme; providing MPs with publicly available information relating to taxation issues; preparing the MPs' code of conduct relating to financial interests; and determining the procedures for investigations and complaints relating to MPs. Henceforth, there will therefore be two codes of conduct for MPs to follow: a non-statutory code drawn up by the House of Commons itself; and a statutory code drawn up by the IPSA.
The IPSA will take over some of the functions previously undertaken by the Fees Office. It will not, however, determine the level of MPs' pay. That will remain a matter for the Senior Salaries Review Body which annually informs the Speaker of the House of Commons of the percentage increase to be awarded to MPs.
Criticism of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) has been criticised for severely complicating the expenses claims process for MPs and their staff. Former Member of Parliament Paul Flynn recalled his experiences with IPSA upon its creation: "A monthly thirty-minute chore was complicated by ISPA into endless hours of tedious frustrating trawling through a bureaucratic morass of irrational rules" and he believed, "A simple five-part claims system was atomised into a hundred headings and sub-headings".
Surge in independent candidates
A surge in proposed independent candidate
An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent.
Some politicians have political views th ...
s and enhanced profile of minority parties were noted in the press. In various cases these candidates stood in recognition of the loss of public goodwill suffered by established MPs and parties, and proposed to stand on "clean slate" or anti-sleaze platforms. In the immediate aftermath of the revelations, a Populus
''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood.
The we ...
survey said that only 45% of people were committed to voting in the next general election (although 54% said they wanted an election as soon as possible), which had fallen by around a quarter since before the disclosures began. The Conservatives still maintained their lead over Labour, but support for the BNP was up. The poll showed that 19% of voters were prepared to vote outside of the main three parties, with the British National Party
The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...
, Green Party of England and Wales
The Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW; cy, Plaid Werdd Cymru a Lloegr, kw, Party Gwer Pow an Sowson ha Kembra, often simply the Green Party or Greens) is a green, left-wing political party in England and Wales. Since October 2021, Carla ...
, and UK Independence Party
The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest par ...
also hoping to capitalise, and was particularly pertinent because of the subsequent European Parliament election.
Effect on MPs and on the political structure
The expenses disclosures were published over an extended period of time, with the focus moving to different MPs daily. As a result, there was significant pressure
Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and e ...
on MPs who did not know whether, and for what, they would be discussed, as well as a general deepening hostility that grew over a relatively long period.
On 22 May 2009 Nadine Dorries
Nadine Vanessa Dorries (''née'' Bargery, 21 May 1957) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from 2021 to 2022 under Prime Minister Boris Johnson. A member of the Conservative Party, she ...
, the Conservative MP for Mid Bedfordshire went on record in saying that many of her colleagues "feared a suicide" and that MPs were "beginning to crack". She likened the atmosphere in Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
to that surrounding Senator Joseph McCarthy
Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarthy became the most visi ...
's "witch hunts" of suspected Communists during the 1950s. The comment led to a forceful rebuke by Conservative leader David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, who stated that the anger and mood were warranted and that MPs should be more concerned about what the public were thinking.
On 23 May 2009 the Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth, (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet. He was the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, a position he held from December 2002 to December 2012. Previously the Bish ...
warned about the potential effect of the controversy on the democratic process, and that "the continuing systematic humiliation of politicians itself threatens to carry a heavy price in terms of our ability to salvage some confidence in our democracy." On the same day writing in The Times, columnist and former MP Matthew Parris
Matthew Francis Parris (born 7 August 1949) is a British political writer and broadcaster, formerly a Conservative Member of Parliament. He was born in South Africa to British parents.
Early life and family
Parris is the eldest of six children ...
reflected that "extravagance, genuine mistake, sly acquisitiveness and outright criminal fraud are now jumbled together in the national mind as though there were no moral differences".
On 11 June 2009 ex-communities secretary Hazel Blears
Hazel Anne Blears (born 14 May 1956) is a former British Labour Party politician, who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Salford and Eccles, previously Salford, from 1997 to 2015.
One of 101 female Labour MPs elected at the 1997 gen ...
, who chose to resign from the government just before the English county council and European elections, said that she regretted the timing of her decision. She also stated that her decision to wear a brooch with the words 'rocking the boat' on the same day as the resignation was a "stupid thing to do". Speaking to the ''Manchester Evening News
The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 201 ...
'' she said of the brooch "It was a brooch my husband had given me. I'd had four weeks of intense media pressure, the like of which I have never known, not just on me but on my husband, my dad, my family. At that point I'd had enough. It was a stupid thing to do but I think it was just trying to put a brave face on—not going out cowed on the basis of expenses claims that genuinely are not true."
74 MPs lost their seats in the 2010 general election.
Reform proposals
On 25 May 2009, Health Secretary Alan Johnson
Alan Arthur Johnson (born 17 May 1950) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Skills from 2006 to 2007, Secretary of State for Health from 2007 to 2009, Home Secretary from 2009 to 2010, and Shadow Chancel ...
(seen as a possible candidate for Labour leadership) stated that one response to the controversy should be a full review of the electoral and political system. He proposed as part of this, a referendum on changing the electoral system to Alternative vote plus
The alternative vote plus (AV+), or alternative vote top-up, is a semi-proportional voting system. AV+ was devised by the 1998 Jenkins Commission which first proposed the idea as a system that could be used for elections to the Parliament of ...
.
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, the Conservative Party leader of the opposition, set out his proposal for reform in ''The Guardian''. He proposed strengthening the power of backbenchers over the government, and other measures as part of 'a radical redistribution of power'. Writing in ''The Guardian'' on 27 May 2009, Liberal Democrat
Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties ...
leader Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicepr ...
suggested cancelling MPs holidays until 'the constitutional crisis sparked by the row over expenses is resolved'. Setting out a week by week plan, Clegg made wide-ranging proposals, from placing a cap on individual donations to political parties, to replacing the House of Lords with an elected Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, to allowing a referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
on electoral reform
Electoral reform is a change in electoral systems which alters how public desires are expressed in election results. That can include reforms of:
* Voting systems, such as proportional representation, a two-round system (runoff voting), instant-ru ...
.
The major political parties and some minority parties (not UKIP) have stated they will publicly disclose information on expenses claims by UK Members of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Commu ...
. The proposed disclosures vary between parties.
A study of the possible influence of the voting system on MPs behaviour concluded that those MPs with the safest seats were twice as likely as those with the most marginal seats to be involved in the expenses row.
Police and tax authority responses
The UK tax authority HM Revenue and Customs
HM Revenue and Customs (His Majesty's Revenue and Customs, or HMRC) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the His Majesty's Government, UK Government responsible fo ...
(HMRC) has identified around 40 MPs, including the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, as having claimed for their tax return costs. A minority of these have affirmed they paid tax on the sums involved; HMRC have confirmed they are investigating former Chancellor Alistair Darling
Alistair Maclean Darling, Baron Darling of Roulanish, (born 28 November 1953) is a British politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer under Prime Minister Gordon Brown from 2007 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he was a Member ...
's tax claims, along with those of others involved. Darling had claimed the costs of preparing his tax return as an expense of his office, although tax law regards them as personal costs. Lord Millett
Peter Julian Millett, Baron Millett, , (23 June 1932 – 27 May 2021) was a British barrister and judge. He was a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1998 to 2004.
Biography
Early life
The son of Denis and Adele Millett, he was educated at Har ...
, a former Law Lord
Lords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were judges appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the British House of Lords, as a committee of the House, effectively to exercise the judicial functions of the House of ...
, described Darling's claim as "astounding", and guidance to ministers in 2005 had stated that such expenses were not claimable for tax purposes.
The Economic and Specialist Crime branch of the Metropolitan Police
The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
Service have started investigating claims made by a few MPs.
Criminal charges
Keir Starmer
Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...
, Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members o ...
for England and Wales announced on 5 February 2010 that three Labour MPs, Elliot Morley
Elliot Anthony Morley (born 6 July 1952) is a British former Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glanford and Scunthorpe from 1987 to 1997 and then Scunthorpe from 1997 to 2010. In 2009, he was accused by ''The D ...
, David Chaytor
David Michael Chaytor (born 3 August 1949) is a former British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury North from 1997 to 2010. He was the first member of Parliament to be sentenced following the United Kingdom ...
and Jim Devine
James Devine (born 21 May 1953) is a former Member of Parliament. He was the Labour Party member for Livingston from 2005 until 2010 and Chairman of the Scottish Labour Party between 1994 and 1995.
On 16 June 2009, following the 2009 expenses ...
, and Conservative peer Lord Hanningfield
Paul Edward Winston White, Baron Hanningfield (born 16 September 1940) is a British politician and a member of the House of Lords. He served in various leadership roles in local government as a Conservative and was influential in the establishm ...
would face criminal charges of false accounting in relation to their expense claims. He said that the Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal adv ...
had concluded that "there is sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges and that it is in the public interest to charge the individuals concerned". All four denied wrongdoing and said they would fight the charges. A joint statement from Morley, Chaytor and Devine said "we totally refute any charges that we have committed an offence and we will defend our position robustly", while Hanningfield said "all the claims I have ever made were made in good faith".
David Chaytor
David Chaytor
David Michael Chaytor (born 3 August 1949) is a former British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury North from 1997 to 2010. He was the first member of Parliament to be sentenced following the United Kingdom ...
(Labour) appealed along with Jim Devine and Elliot Morley to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom that his actions were protected by parliamentary privilege. The Supreme Court ruled against them and he subsequently pleaded guilty to charges of false accounting a total of £18,350, and was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment.
Jim Devine
Jim Devine
James Devine (born 21 May 1953) is a former Member of Parliament. He was the Labour Party member for Livingston from 2005 until 2010 and Chairman of the Scottish Labour Party between 1994 and 1995.
On 16 June 2009, following the 2009 expenses ...
(Labour) pleaded not guilty and was found guilty on two counts but cleared of a third (relating to £360) on 10 February 2011. He had fraudulently claimed a total of £8,385 and
on 31 March 2011 was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment.
Eric Illsley
Eric Illsley
Eric Evlyn Illsley (born 9 April 1955) is a former British Labour politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Barnsley Central from 1987 until 2011. He was a Labour Party representative until suspended from the party after being char ...
(Labour) pleaded guilty to charges of false accounting totalling £14,000 and was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court to 12 months imprisonment.
Denis MacShane
Denis MacShane
Denis MacShane (born Josef Denis Matyjaszek; 21 May 1948) is a British former politician, author and commentator who served as Minister of State for Europe from 2002 to 2005. He joined the Labour Party in 1970 and has held most party offices. ...
(Labour) was jailed for six months on 23 December 2013 for expenses fraud, after admitting submitting 19 fake receipts amounting to £12,900, making him the fifth MP to get a prison sentence as a result of the scandal.
Margaret Moran
Margaret Moran
Margaret Mary Moran (born 24 April 1955) is a former Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Moran was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South from the 1997 general election to 2010. In November 2012, jurors at Southwark Crown Cou ...
(Labour). On 6 September 2011 the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced that Moran would face 21 criminal charges 15 of false accounting and six charges of forgery. She was summoned to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 19 September 2011 where she was reported to have wept throughout the hearing.
Moran was sent to the Crown Court at Southwark for trial on 30 October 2011. She failed to appear and a 'not guilty' plea was entered by default in her absence. A date for the trial of an issue was set for 18 April with a directions hearing set for 15 December. On 15 December 2011 Mr Justice Saunders was informed that psychiatrists considered Moran unfit to plead with the defence contending that the trial should therefore not proceed. In April 2012, after receiving evidence from a number of psychiatrists, the judge determined that Moran was not fit to plead. On 13 November 2012 a jury found her guilty of the acts alleged. In December, she was sentenced to a two-year supervision and treatment order, the judge commenting that although some might feel she had "got away with it", the court had acted "in accordance with the law of the land and on the basis of the evidence that it hears". Her false claims totalled more than £53,000, the largest fraud of any MP in the expenses scandal.
Elliot Morley
Elliot Morley
Elliot Anthony Morley (born 6 July 1952) is a British former Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glanford and Scunthorpe from 1987 to 1997 and then Scunthorpe from 1997 to 2010. In 2009, he was accused by ''The D ...
(Labour) admitted two charges of dishonesty and was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 20 May 2011 to 16 months imprisonment. His false claims totalled £31,333.54. On 8 June 2011, he was expelled from the Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
, the first expulsion since Edgar Speyer
Sir Edgar Speyer, 1st Baronet (7 September 1862 – 16 February 1932) was an American-born financier and philanthropist. Barker 2004. He became a British subject in 1892 and was chairman of Speyer Brothers, the British branch of the Speyer famil ...
in 1921, and thereby removing his right to use the honorific title The Right Honourable
''The Right Honourable'' ( abbreviation: ''Rt Hon.'' or variations) is an honorific style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations. The term is ...
.
Lord Taylor of Warwick
Lord Taylor of Warwick (Conservative) pleaded not guilty to six charges of false accounting, but was convicted at Southwark Crown Court on 25 January 2011. His false claims amounted to £11,277 and on 31 May 2011 he was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment.
Lord Hanningfield
Paul White, Baron Hanningfield
Paul Edward Winston White, Baron Hanningfield (born 16 September 1940) is a British politician and a member of the House of Lords. He served in various leadership roles in local government as a Conservative and was influential in the establishm ...
(Conservative) pleaded not guilty to six charges of false accounting, but was convicted at Chelmsford Crown Court on 26 May 2011. He was given a 9-month sentence which was confirmed when his appeal against the conviction and sentence failed in July 2011. As a low-risk prisoner he was released in September 2011 on home detention after serving a quarter of the sentence. After repaying the wrongly claimed £30,254.50 he returned to the House of Lords in April 2012.
Independent audit
An independent panel chaired by former civil servant Sir Thomas Legg was established following the row, with a remit to examine all claims relating to the second homes allowance between 2004 and 2008. The panel published its findings on 12 October as MPs returned to Westminster following the summer recess, with each MP receiving a letter in which they were informed whether or not they would be required to repay any expenses they had claimed. Among those who had to repay expenses were Prime Minister Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
who claimed £12,415 for cleaning and gardening costs and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicepr ...
who was asked to pay back £910 from a £3,900 claim he made for gardening between 2006 and 2009. Conservative leader David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
was asked to provide more information regarding over-claiming in 2006 when he changed his mortgage, he had already repaid £218.[ Former Home Secretary ]Jacqui Smith
Jacqueline Jill Smith (born 3 November 1962) is a British broadcaster, political commentator and former Labour Party politician. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Redditch from 1997 to 2010. She served as Home Secretary from 2007 to 2009 ...
apologised to the House of Commons after a separate investigation found that she had breached expenses rules over claims made on her second home.[
MPs from all main political parties expressed their anger at Legg's decision to retroactively enforce the rules, meaning some payouts already allowed were now treated as violations. Many senior MPs questioned Legg's authority and cast doubt on the legality of his findings. It was reported that some MPs, including Tory ]Jonathan Djanogly
Jonathan Simon Djanogly (born 3 June 1965) is an English politician, solicitor and Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Huntingdon since 2001. Djanogly has been Trade and Industry Spokesman shadowing the Department for Business, En ...
would challenge the requests to repay their claims. But both the Labour and Conservative leaders urged their party members to pay any overpaid expenses back. Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
said that MPs should "deal with" the retroactive rules, while David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
warned that any member of the Conservative Party who was unwilling to comply with the rules would not be able to stand for the party at the next general election.
Awards
At the 2010 British Press Awards
The Press Awards, formerly the British Press Awards, is an annual ceremony that celebrates the best of British journalism.
History
Established in 1962 by ''The People'' and '' World's Press News'', the first award ceremony for the then-named '' ...
, ''The Daily Telegraph'' was named the "National Newspaper of the Year" for its coverage of the MPs expenses scandal, which was also referred to as the "Scoop of the Year". William Lewis won "Journalist of the Year" for his reporting role as well.['']Press Gazette
''Press Gazette'', formerly known as ''UK Press Gazette'' (UKPG), is a British media trade magazine dedicated to journalism and the press. First published in 1965, it had a circulation of about 2,500, before becoming online-only in 2013. Publis ...
''
Roll of Honour
. Retrieved 24 July 2011
MPs accused of editing their Wikipedia pages
In May 2010 it was reported in ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' that a number of MPs and their staff have been caught attempting to edit their personal Wikipedia pages to remove references to their expenses claims. Wikipedia staff found that a number of IP address
An Internet Protocol address (IP address) is a numerical label such as that is connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication.. Updated by . An IP address serves two main functions: network interface ident ...
es associated with the Parliamentary Estate
The Parliamentary Estate is the land and buildings used by the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The most notable part of the Parliamentary Estate is the Palace of Westminster, where the chambers of both houses of Parliament (the Commons and th ...
had been attempting to remove potentially embarrassing information surrounding MPs expenses claims from their Wikipedia profiles. The article made specific allegations against Chris Grayling
Christopher Stephen Grayling (born 1 April 1962) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician and author who served as Secretary of State for Transport from 2016 to 2019. He has served as Member of Parliament (United King ...
(Con), Margaret Moran
Margaret Mary Moran (born 24 April 1955) is a former Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Moran was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South from the 1997 general election to 2010. In November 2012, jurors at Southwark Crown Cou ...
(Lab) and Joan Ryan (Lab).
See also
* Salaries of members of the United Kingdom Parliament
*
*
* ''On Expenses
On, on, or ON may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* On (band), a solo project of Ken Andrews
* ''On'' (EP), a 1993 EP by Aphex Twin
* ''On'' (Echobelly album), 1995
* ''On'' (Gary Glitter album), 2001
* ''On'' (Imperial Teen album), 200 ...
'', BBC Four dramatisation of the scandal
Further reading
*
*
* Graffin, S. D., Bundy, J., Porac, J. F., Wade, J. B., & Quinn, D. P. (2013).
Falls from grace and the hazards of high status: The 2009 British MP expense scandal and its impact on Parliamentary elites
. ''Administrative Science Quarterly
''Administrative Science Quarterly'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering the field of organizational studies. The journal was established in 1956 and is published by SAGE Publications for the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Manage ...
.'' Sage Journals. 58 (3): 313–345
doi: 10.1177/0001839213497011
References
External links
* – BBC summary of the controversy
* – BBC summary of each MP's expenses claims
Complete list of MP's expenses from 2004–05 to 2007–08
{{DEFAULTSORT:United Kingdom Parliamentary Expenses Scandal
2009 controversies
Political scandals in the United Kingdom
2009 in British politics
Expenses scandal
Data journalism