Isle of Wight MP Andrew Turner was revealed today to be among 341 MPs who have billed taxpayers for utility charges on their second homes.
Mr Turner was near the bottom of the list, claiming just £30.01 on expenses for electricity in 12 months, but the revelations will come as an embarrassment as he waits to hear whether he is to be reselected by the Isle of Wight Conservative Association (IWCA) for the 2015 General Election.
In 2011-12, he claimed over £50,000 in expenses, the highest among MPs along the South coast.
Alan Wells critical of MP over London flat
The IWCA has kept silent over recent allegations of in-fighting over Mr Turner’s record of supporting the previous council administration, but the Sunday Mirror revelations will undoubtedly fuel the debate.
Last year IWCA chairman Alan Wells criticised Mr Turner for claiming expenses to rent a flat in London from another Parliamentarian, despite owning his own home in the capital. At the time Mr Wells said he feared it could harm Mr Turner’s chances at the next election.
Mr Turner’s claims placed him 338th out of the 341 MPs; the rest of the 650 MPs had not claimed. The highest amount was claimed by Tory MP for Stratford-upon-Avon, Nadhim Zahawi, who asked taxpayers to foot the energy bill of £5,822 for his 31-acre constituency estate.
Fuel Poverty Action: MPs “immune from the price hikes”
Clare Fulton, of the Fuel Poverty Action lobby group, said the expenses revealed the “hypocrisy” of MPs, who have failed to take any robust action against the Big Six energy firms because “they are immune from the price hikes.”
She said: “When the government’s only response to millions of people not being able to afford their fuel bills is to tell us to change supplier or wear a jumper, it is outrageous to see MPs claiming hefty amounts of taxpayer money to pay for their own bills.”
Her concerns were echoed by Dave Prentis from the UNISON trade union, who told the Mirror:
“It’s disgraceful that well-paid MPs should make these claims as thousands of families are struggling to pay to turn the oven on to cook dinner.”
Source: Sunday Mirror
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