Do you need a swimming pool to carry out your political activities?
Claims that a Tory MP entered an expense claim in relation to his swimming pool maintenance is just the latest in a number of bizarre and truly baffling expense claims. We have seen claims for plugs, dog food, personal healthcare items, treatment for dry rot and many many more truly laughable expense claims. So how have MPs managed to "get away" with these more bizarre expense claims?
As we have mentioned a number of occasions, while the wording of the official expenses booklet indicates that only expenses encountered in the process of carrying out public duties should be claimed, this appears to have gone out of the window. The problem for many MPs is the fact that they never for one second thought that their expense claims would be published for the public to peruse and dissect and this has caused significant unrest, embarrassment and voter backlash. However, it must be stated that no claims so far have broken the rules!
In another development, we have seen the Sinn Fein political wing claim hundreds of thousands of pounds in property rental expenses despite the fact that they have refused to take up their offices in the House of Commons. When will it all stop and where exactly does the buck stop?
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