I did nothing wrong, insists Capital MP in flat windfall

Published on Saturday 30 May 2009 11:18

EDINBURGH West MP John Barrett today said he did not believe he had done anything wrong in using a cash windfall from a property company to cover some of his parliamentary expenses.

But he said he had written to the Commons standards commissioner, asking him to give an independent assessment.

The Liberal Democrat was one of several MPs offered lump sums by a developer to give up leases on flats in Dolphin Square, a block of about 1,000 apartments 30 minutes' walk from the Commons.

They were each asked by the Daily Telegraph whether they had taken the cash and what they had done with it.

Mr Barrett, who had lived in Dolphin Square for six years, said he had decided to accept the sum – just under 8,200 net – and move out of the property.

But he said he had paid about 1,500 in capital gains tax on the windfall and set aside about 2,500 to pay rent on his London flat during parliament's suspension for the last and forthcoming general elections when it is not covered by Commons allowances.

He had also used about 1,000 to cover the cost of modest furnishings for his current flat and planned to use the rest for expenses he was entitled to claim but did not, including a food allowance and petrol costs.

He said: "I am using the developer's money rather than the taxpayers'. I don't feel I have done anything wrong."

But Mr Barrett said he had written to parliamentary standards commissioner John Lyon to get an independent view.

He said: "The block used to be owned by the Dolphin Square Trust but in 2005 a property company called Westbrook bought the entire block of flats. They wanted to get the leases of people who had assured tenancies and they offered a lump sum. I took that lump sum to go – it was 11,234 gross and 8,174.74 net. It was a windfall so I paid capital gains tax.

"Then, when parliament was dissolved for the 2005 general election, it does not pay the rent for the next month, about 1,000. When it comes to the next election, I will have to pay around 1,500 in rent which cannot be reclaimed."

He said when he moved into his flat, the year's rent and the cost of furnishing it took him about 1,000 over the maximum annual claim allowed, so he had used part of the windfall to cover that.

And he said: "I will use the balance to cover costs I don't claim. There is subsistence allowance for food and incidental costs which I have not claimed for a year and will not claim next year – that would be about 2,000.

"And I don't claim my constituency petrol costs, which is about 750-1,000 a year."