Senior LibDems including their Leader, Deputy Leader and President all funnel parliamentary expenses to their local parties through re-renting, despite the buildings already being owned or rented by the LibDems. Clegg, Hughes, Farron, Ed Davey and Danny Alexander are amoungst 25 LibDems “re-renting” their MPs offices and helping to swell party coffers with taxpayer cash:
Danny Alexander: Inverness East Liberal Democrats
Tom Brake: Sutton Liberal Democrat Party
Malcolm Bruce: Aberdeenshire East Liberal Democrats
Paul Burstow: Sutton Liberal Democrat Party
Menzies Campbell: North East & Central Fife Liberal Democrats
Nick Clegg: Sheffield Hallam Liberal Democrats
Edward Davey: Kingston Liberal Democrat Property Co. Ltd
Tim Farron: Westmoreland and Lonsdale Liberal Democrats
Lynne Featherstone: Haringey Liberal Democrats
David Heath: Somerton & Frome Liberal Democrats
Simon Hughes: Bermondsey and Old Southwark Liberal Democrats
Mark Hunter: Cheadle Constituency Liberal Democrats
Charles Kennedy: Ross, Skye and Lochaber Liberal Democrat Association
John Leech: Withington Constituency Liberal Democrat Party
Stephen Lloyd: The Trustees of Eastbourne Liberal Democrats
Gregory Mulholland: Leeds North West Liberal Democrat Party
John Pugh: The Trustees of the Gladstone Liberal Club
Daniel Rogerson: Launceston Liberal Club Ltd
Bob Russell: Colchester Liberal Democratic Party
Adrian Sanders: Torquay Liberal Association (1949) Ltd
Robert Smith: West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine Liberal Democrats
Andrew Stunell: Hazel Grove Liberal Democrats
Mark Williams: Aberystwyth Liberal Association Ltd
Roger Williams: Brecon and Radnorshire Liberal Democrat Association
Jenny Willott: Cardiff Central Liberal Democrats
Simon Wright: East of England Liberal Democrats
If your constituency party own their offices, charging the taxpayer for rent is what HMRC call “a contrived expense”. Guido calls it a fiddle. The “re-renting” expense fiddle is also undemocratic: taxpayers subsidise incumbent MPs against their ballot box challengers. The LibDems are well aware of this, in 2008 they gave a presentation to their MPs urging them to maximise expenses for party benefit.
