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MP repays mortgage expense error MP repays mortgage expense error
(about 1 hour later)
A former environment minister has admitted claiming £16,000 on expenses for a mortgage that did not exist. A former minister has admitted he claimed £16,000 on expenses for a mortgage that had been paid off.
Labour MP Elliot Morley claimed £800 per month for a property in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, when the mortgage had already been paid. Labour MP Elliot Morley told the BBC he had repaid the money and it had been a mistake which he felt terrible about.
Mr Morley told the BBC he repaid the money upon realising he had mistakenly continued claiming for his mortgage payments after it was repaid in 2006. The Telegraph reported he claimed £800 a month for a Scunthorpe property for 18 months after the mortgage ended.
It is the latest in a string of Daily Telegraph revelations on MPs' expenses. More than 20 MPs have said they will pay back claims totalling nearly £130,000, amid public anger after days of revelations from leaked receipts.
Mr Morley told the BBC the mistake was entirely his fault, that he "should have kept a tighter rein" and that he felt terrible about the situation.
He repaid the sum after seeing the receipts two weeks ago.
It is important that we publish these expenses ourselves, as a first step to meeting our constituents' anger on these issues Tony Lloyd MP
Parliamentary Labour Party chairman Tony Lloyd has written to all the party's MPs, urging them to publish their expenses themselves instead of waiting for House of Commons authorities to release them.Parliamentary Labour Party chairman Tony Lloyd has written to all the party's MPs, urging them to publish their expenses themselves instead of waiting for House of Commons authorities to release them.
After details of expense claims were leaked to the Telegraph, the House of Commons Commission said it would bring forward its official publication from the scheduled date in July. 'Tighter reign'
But Mr Lloyd wrote: "It is very important that we each seek to put our expenses into the public domain as a matter of urgency." Mr Morley told the BBC he repaid the money two weeks ago upon realising he had mistakenly continued claiming for his mortgage payments after it was repaid in 2006.
The Manchester Central MP said he would be releasing the details of his expenses to a local newspaper on Monday. He said the mistake was entirely his fault, that he "should have kept a tighter rein" and that he felt terrible about the situation.
"It is important that we publish these expenses ourselves, as a first step to meeting our constituents' anger on these issues," he added. In other allegations in Thursday's Telegraph, another Labour MP, Fabian Hamilton, is reported to have declared his mother's London home as his main residence, while claiming allowances for his designated "second home" in his constituency, where his family lived.
A string of MPs from all the main parties have agreed to pay back some of their expenses claims. It is important that we publish these expenses ourselves, as a first step to meeting our constituents' anger on these issues Tony Lloyd MP class="" href="/1/hi/uk_politics/8047410.stm">Health minister to repay £41,709
Health minister Phil Hope said on Wednesday he would repay £41,709 he spent on refurbishing and furnishing a two-bedroom flat in south London. The Leeds North East MP told the newspaper he spent the majority of his time in the house owned by his mother until her death in 2005.
'Massive blow' And Conservative MP John Maples is accused of effectively claiming that a private members' club in Pall Mall was his "main home" while he claimed expenses on his constituency home.
He said negative coverage about his claims had been a "massive blow" to him and his family and reduced the standing in which he was held by his constituents. He told BBC 2's Newsnight the claim had been "misrepresented". He said he had sold one home but had to wait several months before he could move into the new one he had bought.
Communities Secretary Hazel Blears is to pay £13,332 in respect of capital gains tax on the sale of her second home, while Labour colleague for Luton, Margaret Moran, is to pay back £22,500 she spent on treating dry rot at a property in Southampton. 'Behaved honestly'
A string of Tories also agreed to pay back thousands of pounds for claims including home improvements, furniture and work on a tennis court, after party leader David Cameron threatened them with the sack. During that period he said he lived for one month in the club and for the rest of the time in a flat and had sought advice from Commons officials who agreed that he could carry on claiming the allowance.
"I'm confident that I behaved honestly, I laid all this out in a thorough and honest way," he said.
On Wednesday health minister Phil Hope said he would repay £41,709 he had claimed over four years to refurbish a two-bedroom flat.
He said his constituents' anger and damage done to his reputation had been "a massive blow to me that I cannot allow to continue".
Details of expenses claims were leaked to the Daily Telegraph ahead of their scheduled publication due in mid-July.
The Commons had been ordered to publish all receipts for all 646 MPs going back four years, after losing a Freedom of Information case at the High Court.
The House of Commons Commission has said it will try to bring forward the scheduled publication date.
Constituents' anger
But in a letter to Labour MPs, Mr Lloyd wrote: "I do not think it wise to wait longer than necessary for something that is certainly going to be published soon, and is already in the hands of a national newspaper.
"In my view it is important that we publish these expenses ourselves, as a first step to meeting our constituents' anger on these issues."
Communities Secretary Hazel Blears has already said she would pay £13,332 in respect of capital gains tax on the sale of her second home.
Labour MP for Luton, Margaret Moran, is to pay back £22,500 she spent on treating dry rot at a property in Southampton.
And several Conservative MPs have agreed to pay back thousands of pounds for claims including home improvements, furniture and work on a tennis court, after party leader David Cameron threatened them with the sack.
Commons clashes
On Wednesday, Mr Cameron clashed with Prime Minister Gordon Brown in the Commons over the need for reform.On Wednesday, Mr Cameron clashed with Prime Minister Gordon Brown in the Commons over the need for reform.
Mr Brown has said all MPs' receipts for expenses claimed over four years must be independently scrutinised.Mr Brown has said all MPs' receipts for expenses claimed over four years must be independently scrutinised.
But Mr Cameron said simply looking at whether past rules were obeyed would not restore trust.But Mr Cameron said simply looking at whether past rules were obeyed would not restore trust.
Meanwhile, pressure continues to mount on Commons Speaker Michael Martin over his handling of the furore.Meanwhile, pressure continues to mount on Commons Speaker Michael Martin over his handling of the furore.
Conservative Douglas Carswell is to table a motion of no-confidence in Mr Martin, with several Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs agreeing to back him.Conservative Douglas Carswell is to table a motion of no-confidence in Mr Martin, with several Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs agreeing to back him.