Speaker spends £20,000 on redecoration
By Liz Stephens
The speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, ordered a £20,000 refurbishment of his grace-and-favour residence despite pledging to forgo the second home allowance when he was appointed two months ago.
Items listed in a confidential document obtained by The Daily Telegraph include £7,524 on a sofa suite and window seat cushions for the drawing room.
Mr Bercow’s redecoration comes despite the fact that his predecessor Michael Martin spent over £700,000 on refurbishing the same residence between 2000 and 2008.
As part of his election pledge Mr Bercow said he would forego the £24,000-a-year second home allowance to restore trust in the wake of the expenses scandal.
However, the Speaker said most of the expenditure was necessary to adapt and child-proof the residence for his three young children.
“It’s a fantastic apartment but it’s not altogether child-friendly,” Mr Bercow said.
A Commons source said: “The Speaker believes that these are reasonable costs and they reflect the fact that he has a young family to accommodate.
“He believes people can see that it is not extravagance and that the money has been spent wisely, for example the bed that he has brought in is from Ikea”.
However, some items, such as £620 on providing a TV and aerial socket with a Sky box, are raising eyebrows.
But Mr Bercow is likely to argue that his spending is dwarfed by that of his predecessor.
The new Speaker was elected in June after Michael Martin was forced from office over his handling of the expenses scandal.
At the time of election Mr Bercow told MPs: “It is high time the House was run by professionals on a transparent basis, ensuring that we are accountable to the people who put us here.
“Until we can move the debate on from sleaze and second homes to the future of this House, we shall remain in deep trouble.”
Shortly before his election he agreed to pay back more than £6,000 in previous expenses claims, including nearly £1,000 claimed for accountancy advice.
Mr Bercow and his wife still own a flat in a block nearby for which, until recently, he was claiming £1,050 a month in mortgage interest payments on his expenses.
