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Expense mole 'fury over Army kit' Expense mole 'angry at Army kit'
(18 minutes later)
The expenses scandal began because the mole who caused the leak was angry about inadequate equipment for the armed forces, the Daily Telegraph said. The mole who leaked details of MPs' expenses says he was partly motivated by anger at inadequate equipment for UK troops, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The newspaper says staff who worked in secrecy on MPs' receipts were guarded by servicemen on leave between tours. It says staff who worked in secrecy on MPs' receipts were guarded by servicemen moonlighting to earn extra money on leave between tours.
They became angry after seeing MPs' lavish claims when soldiers had poor equipment, prompting a civil servant to leak the story, the paper says. The mole, who has not been named, said their stories "helped tip the balance" in the decision to leak details.
But Gordon Brown said he did not understand the motivation for the leak. The Telegraph has confirmed it paid £110,000 for the information.
The unidentified mole is quoted as saying the soldiers' accounts of their poor equipment prompted him to leak the information. The claims are made in a book being published by the Daily Telegraph on Friday about the expenses scandal.
According to the Telegraph, he claims that many of the service personnel were moonlighting so they could buy better kit. 'Better Commons'
Tipping point The newspaper leaked details of what MPs had been claiming on their second homes expenses in May - the Commons had been ordered to compile receipts and claims made over four years by the High Court, following a long-running Freedom of Information battle.
After the story broke, party leaders agreed interim reforms to the system, many MPs agreed to repay money and some have since announced they will not be seeking re-election.
Andrew Pierce, the Telegraph's assistant editor, told the BBC the payment to the source of the leak was an "insurance policy" for the mole, as that person would lose their job if the government discovered their identity. He also said it was "cheap at the price" as MPs had already repaid hundreds of thousands of pounds.
I have been determined to make sure that the troops that are serving our country are properly paid, that we make proper allowance for them, that we give them the best equipment, that we help them in every way possible Gordon Brown General quits 'over Afghanistan'
He said: "We paid £110,000 to the source. And let me just say, so far the taxpayer has been reimbursed by MPs £500,000, and there will be more; we have got a much better Commons as a result of it."
Sources at the Ministry of Defence (MoD) have cast doubt on whether serving soldiers would be allowed, or have the time, to moonlight as security guards. But Mr Pierce said the newspaper had "clear evidence" some were doing extra work to buy equipment.
The paper quotes the mole as saying: "It's not easy to watch footage on the television news of a coffin draped in a Union Jack and then come in to work the next day and see on your computer screen what MPs are taking for themselves."The paper quotes the mole as saying: "It's not easy to watch footage on the television news of a coffin draped in a Union Jack and then come in to work the next day and see on your computer screen what MPs are taking for themselves."
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said their "top priority is to provide the best equipment for our people in Afghanistan". The MoD said its "top priority is to provide the best equipment for our people in Afghanistan".
'Big problem'
But the mole is quoted as saying that the stark contrast between conditions facing soldiers and the MPs' lavish claims "helped tip the balance in the decision over whether I should or should not leak the expenses data".But the mole is quoted as saying that the stark contrast between conditions facing soldiers and the MPs' lavish claims "helped tip the balance in the decision over whether I should or should not leak the expenses data".
"When they're out in Afghanistan they're out there for Queen and country, earning £16,000 or £17,000-a-year, knowing they're going to take losses, while the MPs are sitting in Parliament on £65,000, with massive expenses, and meanwhile you've got bodies coming home.""When they're out in Afghanistan they're out there for Queen and country, earning £16,000 or £17,000-a-year, knowing they're going to take losses, while the MPs are sitting in Parliament on £65,000, with massive expenses, and meanwhile you've got bodies coming home."
That was why I leaked the information: because the British public deserves better MPs' expenses mole
Asked on Sky News if he understood the motivation for the expenses leak, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "I don't think so."Asked on Sky News if he understood the motivation for the expenses leak, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "I don't think so."
He added: "MPs have got to live in two places at once - that is a big problem.He added: "MPs have got to live in two places at once - that is a big problem.
"As far as the troops in Afghanistan are concerned, right throughout the period I have been chancellor and then prime minister, I have been determined to make sure that the troops that are serving our country are properly paid, that we make proper allowance for them, that we give them the best equipment, that we help them in every way possible.""As far as the troops in Afghanistan are concerned, right throughout the period I have been chancellor and then prime minister, I have been determined to make sure that the troops that are serving our country are properly paid, that we make proper allowance for them, that we give them the best equipment, that we help them in every way possible."
The MoD said: "Since 2006, we have delivered equipment valued at more than £10bn to the Armed Forces. Every soldier who deploys to Afghanistan receives Osprey body armour and a Mark 6a helmet MoD spokesman
The MoD said: "Since 2006, we have delivered equipment valued at more than £10bn to the armed forces.
"Every soldier who deploys to Afghanistan receives Osprey body armour and a Mark 6a helmet."Every soldier who deploys to Afghanistan receives Osprey body armour and a Mark 6a helmet.
"They also receive a black bag containing all their operational requirements. Valued at £3,500, it contains everything a soldier will need from boots and socks to camel backs.""They also receive a black bag containing all their operational requirements. Valued at £3,500, it contains everything a soldier will need from boots and socks to camel backs."
The mole said everyone working on the MPs' expenses claims were "of the same mind" about the situation. The Telegraph says about 20 of Her Majesty's Stationery Office and parliamentary staff worked for months in great secrecy in a south London office copying and processing the MPs' receipts.
Mole hunt called off Douglas Young, from the British Armed Forces Federation, said he not believe soldiers were moonlighting to earn money to buy equipment.
"This was our money and these were our employees, effectively, but no-one could hold them to account. But he said it was not surprising if soldiers were to "quite rightly contrast the very lax system applicable to MPs' claims with the really very strict system applied to armed forces claims".
"That was why I leaked the information: because the British public deserves better," the mole is quoted as saying.
The newspaper says that about 20 Her Majesty's Stationery Office and parliamentary staff worked for months in great secrecy in a south London office copying and processing the MPs' receipts.
However, Douglas Young of the British Armed Forces Federation said he not believe soldiers were moon-lighting to earn money to buy equipment.
But he said it was not surprising if soldiers were to "quite rightly contrast the very lax system applicable to MPs claims with the really very strict system applied to armed forces claims".
The BBC's political correspondent Ben Wright said although there was originally a hunt to find the mole when the scandal broke, it was unsuccessful and has since been called off.The BBC's political correspondent Ben Wright said although there was originally a hunt to find the mole when the scandal broke, it was unsuccessful and has since been called off.
Our correspondent said: "Parliament has moved a very long way since then. It has claimed so many careers, it has prompted a massive overhaul of the parliamentary expenses system."
The claims are made in a book being published by the Daily Telegraph on Friday about the expenses scandal called No Expenses Spared.
They come following reports that Maj Gen Andrew Mackay, a senior commander who has served in Afghanistan, has resigned from the forces because he was unhappy about strategy. The MoD insisted his resignation was a "personal matter".
Were you one of the soldiers who saw the MPs' expense claims whilst working as a security guard? Are you a serving soldier who has a second job? Send us your comments on this story.Were you one of the soldiers who saw the MPs' expense claims whilst working as a security guard? Are you a serving soldier who has a second job? Send us your comments on this story.
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