22 March 2024 , 11:29
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Esther McVey has previously pledged to clampdown on waste, saying the Government doesn’t want ’to see a single penny of your hard-earned cash wasted on unnecessary public spending’
The Minister for Common Sense has claimed tens of thousands of pounds of taxpayer money to rent a flat just a 25-minute walk away from her husband’s property, according to reports.
Esther McVey, the Tory MP for Tatton, reportedly claimed Parliamentary expenses on a flat she lives in with her husband Philip Davies, who is also a Tory MP, in Westminster, London. Official records show she received £39,000 over the last two years but the couple are said to have received up to £250,000 in financial help since 2017, according to the Telegraph.
There is no implication of any wrongdoing but questions have been raised about value for money for the taxpayer, as Mr Davies rents out his property in Waterloo.
Ms McVey has previously pledged to clampdown on waste, saying the Government does not want “you to see a single penny of your hard-earned cash wasted on unnecessary public spending”.
Speaking about his property, Mr Davies told campaign group Led by Donkeys, who has been investigating MPs’ claiming rent in expenses: “If I owned the flat outright and I could stay there without incurring any cost then I would agree that I should do that, but that doesn’t remotely apply in my case.” Ms McVey did not respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.
Led by Donkeys has reportedly identified at least another eight MPs who have been claiming rent in London while also registering income from renting out their own properties in the same city.
Rishi Sunak raised eyebrows when he opted to appoint Ms McVey as a minister without portfolio to provide "common sense" in November. Insiders said she would be in charge of pushing back against the "woke" agenda in a bid to placate the Tory right, who were at the time up in arms about Suella Braverman’s sacking.
Ms McVey on Wednesday gave Rishi Sunak her full-throated backing as he faces resistance from other MPs in the Tory party. She predicted that he would win any potential Tory confidence vote "by a country mile". The minister without portfolio told GB News that Penny Mordaunt’s chance of leading the party had "gone to bed" when she "didn’t win" either of the past two leadership battles.