Lord Watson's expenses row

LORD Watson, the disgraced MSP convicted last week of fire-raising, is under renewed pressure to stop attending the House of Lords following revelations that he has claimed £21,000 worth of expenses from Westminster in just two years.

The peer claimed the money despite earning 50,000 a year for his full-time job at the Scottish Parliament. Official House of Lords figures, which date back to April 2001, three years after Lord Watson was awarded his peerage, show that he attended for 56 days in the following two years, charging 21,310 - equivalent to almost 400 a day.

Lords are allowed to claim 192 a day as an attendance allowance, 128 for overnight expenses and more for travel to and from Westminster.

Lord Watson claimed 8,451 for travel; 5,658 for hotel bills; 3,014 for his attendance allowance and 4,187 for office costs.