A Few Facts On Expenses and Allowances

I have always been among the lowest claims for costs incurred for living away from home, but in the top half for claims connected with doing the job and delivering a service to constituents.

The claims are almost ready for publication but in their redacted (edited) form will raise more questions than answers. This is why I have not only offered the Herald advance notice of the edited claims, but have also offered the Herald sight of the unedited claims so that they can compare them and confirm that nothing that should be published has been blacked out.

Once everything has been published all claims will be subjected to an independent audit by an external company. They will look at every claim form, invoice and piece of correspondence going back to 2004 and judge it against the rules at the time and the spirit of the rules today. They will have the power to force repayments and call in the police if necessary.

As will be revealed there is no phantom mortgage, no flipping addresses for financial benefit, no stamp duty or capital gains, or any other tax avoidance, no capital benefit at all, no claim for use of home as office, no luxury range goods, no decorations or repairs, no remembrance wreaths or church collection claims, no moat cleaning/duck islands/tree surgery, no ipods/plasma TVs/double claiming, no gifts/sub-letting income/business usage, no questionable invoices/home renovations/challenged claims, no claimed accountancy fees or website hosting charges.

Should anyone have any questions about individual items I claimed they will be able to draw them to the attention of the independent auditor who will investigate.

There has never been any secrecy over who I employ. Every year my annual report has recorded the names of paid staff and their job titles alongside the names of unpaid volunteers and interns. Since February 2008 I have published the job descriptions and salary bandings on Myspace.

I have written to the Information Commissioner for clarification about revealing individual staff salaries as my understanding is that his 2006 ruling specifically prevents me from doing this. Unless informed directly otherwise I will continue to obey the law and only publish the names of who I employ, their job titles and job descriptions, their salary bandings and the total cost of their employment.

For the record, my Office Manager, Alison Sanders, has a philosophy degree, secretarial qualifications including short-hand, and had 11 years office management experience before working for me. This included over 4 years running Paddy Ashdown's office. 

Finally, interim reforms are moving apace. I am committed to accepting without amendment the main and lasting changes that will be recommended by Sir Christopher Kelly and his committee when they report in a few months time.

Comments

[Adrian]

Dear Nick Venables

The point of the second homes allowance is to accommodate members from constituencies some distance from London. Mine is 200 miles from the capital. They can use it to pay for hotel accommodation that would obviously be cleaned, furnished, contain white goods and include the cost of utilities that would all be reflected in the room rate. They can use it to pay for the interest on a mortgage allowing them to make an equity gain at the expense of the taxpayer. Or they can rent an unfurnished flat as I have and use the allowance to make it more homely and comfortable for those nights away from home and family.

All claims will shortly be subjected to an independent audit by an external organisation. They will look at every claim form, invoice and piece of correspondence going back to 2004 and judge it against the rules at the time and the spirit of the rules today. They will have the power to force repayments and call in the police if necessary.

However, the ultimate audit will be the electorate when they decide how to cast their vote at the next election.

Adrian

[Nick Venables]

Dear Mr Sanders,

I am a Lib Dem supporter who as I'm sure a lot of former Labour voters are, fed up with New Labour's continuation of the Tory policies that I at least believe are the reason for the spend-spend-spend culture that is the cause of the expenses scandal that we are only now becoming fully aware of. However, as I'm sure you are aware, the full details of MPs expenses have now (although heavily censored) been released. Whilst contributing to the Guardian's effort to process the huge amount of information that is available, I was allocated your forms to process.

Out of pure interest I decided to do a quick search and came across your blog. I found this post and to be honest was disappointed to find the same rhetoric spouted by most politicians over this current scandal. You say there will be "no luxury range goods, no decorations or repairs, no remembrance wreaths or church collection claims, no moat cleaning/duck islands/tree surgery, no ipods/plasma TVs/double claiming, no gifts/sub-letting income/business usage, no questionable invoices/home renovations/challenged claims" in your claims which looking over things is technically true. Cast your mind back to 2006 if you would however, you claimed for Speakers for a CD Player, a vase for your flat, even a coffee maker. Although this isn't illegal, fraudulent or a breach of the rules, you must admit that if anything you were part of the system which accepted these ridiculous claims.

Will you admit this? You are obviously a very intelligent man, who has his heart firmly in the right place. As I write this from my university room I thank you and your party for having the conviction to say no to top-up fees. But despite this, you are still part of the system, you still claimed, and in the end you've jumped from one bandwagon to another, the group that blames everyone else but doesn't admit that they themselves claimed and got just as carried away as everyone else.

Whilst I am not a member of your constituency, and this message may not even reach you, I only wish you to know that my respect for - and desire to join - your party and yourself would be greatly increased if you came clean and admitted guilt.

Thank you if you do have the time in what must be a very busy schedule to read this.

Yours Sincerely,
Nick Venables