Post by Frenchie on Aug 12, 2009 20:36:43 GMT 1
Sinn Fein has said it will not be renewing leases on two flats it rents in London for the party's MPs.
In May, the Sunday Telegraph alleged the party had claimed inflated costs for the north London accommodation.
Conor Murphy said he and his fellow Sinn Fein MPs would use hotels while on future constituency business in London.
He said the party had "a proven track record of transparency and honesty when it came to their accounts and expenses".
"We have recently reviewed the issue of accommodation for Sinn Fein MPs in London in the context of best value for public money, security and the reduction in MPs accommodation allowance as of May this year," he said.
"Accordingly we are informing people of a change in our approach to MPs accommodation."
Sinn Fein's five MPs do not take their Westminster seats so are not entitled to salaries, but they do get expenses.
The party said the rental fees also covered charges for parking, housekeeping and utilities.
The Sunday Telegraph claimed Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness paid £3,600 a month in rent to an Irish landlord for a flat which a local estate agent estimated should cost just £1,400.
The paper said the other three MPs paid £5,400 a month for a town house which the estate agent valued at just £1,800.
"Abuse"
Traditional Unionist Voice leader, Jim Allister, has asked if Sinn Fein will now pay back what he called "unwarranted claims".
He said he had been given an assurance by the Metropolitan Police that their officers are considering the concerns he raised with their commissioner in April about the scale of the claims made by the five Sinn Fein MPs.
"When an MP spends only a few hundred pounds travelling to London in a year but claims many thousands under the "London living allowance", it suggests that something odd is afoot" he said.
"Conor Murphy's revelation today that his party will not be renewing its leases on the two flats would suggest that even Sinn Fein now recognize that the claims were an abuse of taxpayer's money".
Disgusting
In May, the Sunday Telegraph alleged the party had claimed inflated costs for the north London accommodation.
Conor Murphy said he and his fellow Sinn Fein MPs would use hotels while on future constituency business in London.
He said the party had "a proven track record of transparency and honesty when it came to their accounts and expenses".
"We have recently reviewed the issue of accommodation for Sinn Fein MPs in London in the context of best value for public money, security and the reduction in MPs accommodation allowance as of May this year," he said.
"Accordingly we are informing people of a change in our approach to MPs accommodation."
Sinn Fein's five MPs do not take their Westminster seats so are not entitled to salaries, but they do get expenses.
The party said the rental fees also covered charges for parking, housekeeping and utilities.
The Sunday Telegraph claimed Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness paid £3,600 a month in rent to an Irish landlord for a flat which a local estate agent estimated should cost just £1,400.
The paper said the other three MPs paid £5,400 a month for a town house which the estate agent valued at just £1,800.
"Abuse"
Traditional Unionist Voice leader, Jim Allister, has asked if Sinn Fein will now pay back what he called "unwarranted claims".
He said he had been given an assurance by the Metropolitan Police that their officers are considering the concerns he raised with their commissioner in April about the scale of the claims made by the five Sinn Fein MPs.
"When an MP spends only a few hundred pounds travelling to London in a year but claims many thousands under the "London living allowance", it suggests that something odd is afoot" he said.
"Conor Murphy's revelation today that his party will not be renewing its leases on the two flats would suggest that even Sinn Fein now recognize that the claims were an abuse of taxpayer's money".
Disgusting