Nannies and Cleaners
The latest MP to be exposed in the never ending expenses scandal is a Tory from Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, Jonathan Djanogly.
Mr D is a millionaire apparently – but one who felt it quite proper to claim £13,000 from the public purse – for a cleaner who doubled up as nanny to look after his children.
The Daily Telegraph has reported that several Conservative activists in Mr Djanogly’s constituency have questions about the expense claims made by their MP to pay domestic staff.
He has already agreed to repay £25,000 — including, it seems, some of the £13,000 paid for cleaning — and has said he will not claim the second home allowance until the expenses system has been reformed.
Apparently Mr D has not made any claims since April 2009 – which is better late than never - but surely he doesn’t expect the public to be grateful?
An analysis of Mr Djanogly’s expenses disclosed that he claimed an average of £400 a month for a “cleaner” for his second home. Some claims were up to £640, even though the family spent on average three days a week or less at the property.
Depressingly, the MP said his £25,000 repayment to the authorities for cleaning and gardening was “in recognition of my part in Parliament’s collective failure to address the expenses system” -
In other words he had not done anything wrong - where have we heard that familiar refrain?
The rules are to blame rules – according to Mr D – not the poor MPs who are really just victims of the House of Commons and its byzantine rules - which MPs created and approved, of course.
But everyone’s been exploiting the system – even the Prime Minister Gordon Brown - who paid for a cleaner for his own London flat - from the public purse.
Gordon Brown’s brother, Andrew, shared the same cleaner – though he paid for her services out of his own pocket – as he should have done.
Funny how MPs are left to decide for themselves - whether they've stepped over the line - and whether or not they should pay back monies - that has clearly been claimed inappropriately.
Until that's put right - things won't change for the better.
Mr D is a millionaire apparently – but one who felt it quite proper to claim £13,000 from the public purse – for a cleaner who doubled up as nanny to look after his children.
The Daily Telegraph has reported that several Conservative activists in Mr Djanogly’s constituency have questions about the expense claims made by their MP to pay domestic staff.
He has already agreed to repay £25,000 — including, it seems, some of the £13,000 paid for cleaning — and has said he will not claim the second home allowance until the expenses system has been reformed.
Apparently Mr D has not made any claims since April 2009 – which is better late than never - but surely he doesn’t expect the public to be grateful?
An analysis of Mr Djanogly’s expenses disclosed that he claimed an average of £400 a month for a “cleaner” for his second home. Some claims were up to £640, even though the family spent on average three days a week or less at the property.
Depressingly, the MP said his £25,000 repayment to the authorities for cleaning and gardening was “in recognition of my part in Parliament’s collective failure to address the expenses system” -
In other words he had not done anything wrong - where have we heard that familiar refrain?
The rules are to blame rules – according to Mr D – not the poor MPs who are really just victims of the House of Commons and its byzantine rules - which MPs created and approved, of course.
But everyone’s been exploiting the system – even the Prime Minister Gordon Brown - who paid for a cleaner for his own London flat - from the public purse.
Gordon Brown’s brother, Andrew, shared the same cleaner – though he paid for her services out of his own pocket – as he should have done.
Funny how MPs are left to decide for themselves - whether they've stepped over the line - and whether or not they should pay back monies - that has clearly been claimed inappropriately.
Until that's put right - things won't change for the better.
