Speaker tells MPs to back demanded expenses claims
- 00:00:52
- ITN
Speaker tells MPs to back demanded expenses claims
Commons Speaker John Bercow has urged MPs to pay back whatever sums are demanded from them by the independent audit of expenses being carried out by Sir Thomas Legg. Mr Bercow said that in order to show the public that they had "got the message" over expenses, MPs had to take the consequences of "demonstrably wrong or extravagant" claims they made in the past. The Speaker has faced some criticism from MPs who feel he has failed to defend them against what they regard as Sir Thomas's unfair imposition of a backdated cap on the amounts they could claim for cleaning and gardening costs at their second homes. This has led to demands for five-figure repayments from MPs including Prime Minister Gordon Brown. But in an interview being broadcast today on BBC Radio 4 he said his message to MPs on the Legg review was: "Accept the result, take the consequence, move on to the future." Mr Bercow has himself paid back almost £1,000 after a letter from Sir Thomas earlier this week alerted him to the fact that he had overclaimed allowances on the mortgage for his second home.
ITN | October 17, 2009
