HOME Secretary Jacqui Smith is to face a parliamentary “sleaze” investigation over her second home allowance after newspaper allegations that she did spend most of her week there.
Graham Dines
HOME Secretary Jacqui Smith is to face a parliamentary “sleaze” investigation over her second home allowance after newspaper allegations that she did spend most of her week there.
A spokesman for the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, John Lyon, said he had now accepted a complaint against Ms Smith, after previously rejecting two requests to investigate Ms Smith over her decision to designate her sister's house in London - where she stays when she is in the capital - as her main home.
She has claimed at least �116,000 in second home allowances on her constituency home in Redditch, Worcestershire, since becoming an MP. Ms Smith has consistently denied any wrongdoing, insisting that she had written approval from the Commons Fees Office for her arrangements.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here