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MP good value?
By Ben Leapman Home Affairs Correspondent, Evening Standard Last updated at 00:00am on 11.01.05An exclusive survey by the Evening Standard has identified which London MPs offer the best and worst value for money. The findings show that high-profile politicians including Michael Portillo, Diane Abbott and Tony Banks are, pound for pound, among the least productive.
Remarkably, three hard-working Liberal Democrats top the table even though the party holds only seven seats in London.
Top-placed Paul Burstow said: "It is quite right that MPs should be held to account for the money they are spending on behalf of taxpayers."
The Standard's table - published as MPs return to Westminster - takes account of their expenses bills and their work rate in the Commons. While the method could be more scientific, we believe the study is the most sophisticated attempt yet to measure MPs' performance.
Former Commons sleazebuster Martin Bell praised our research as a "thoroughly worthwhile exercise". He said: "This is the first time that voters have ever been able to assess the performance of their MPs in terms of value for money. Your findings will allow voters to draw their own conclusions."
A row over MPs' expenses broke out in October when a full breakdown was published for the first time. Controversy centred on the housing allowance which lets most MPs claim back the cost of buying or renting a second home.
Some MPs complained that they were being pilloried unfairly, when in fact they worked hard for the money. London's highest claimer, Andrew Dismore, justified his ?9,328 housing allowance with the extraordinary suggestion that it is impossible to commute to Westminster from his seat in Hendon. But today he achieves a respectable three-star rating, his expenses balanced by a strong 75 per cent attendance record and 328 written questions.
London's 14 Tory MPs perform poorly, with not one achieving five-stars. Tories fill the three bottom slots. In last place is John Wilkinson, exposed by the Standard in the autumn as having moved his main home to the Isle of Man, allowing him to claim ?14,595 from the taxpayer for a second-home allowance on his London house.
Pauline Crawley, chairwoman of the Harefield Tenants and Residents Association in his Ruislip Northwood constituency, said: "I think we would be keen to see him spending more time in the voting lobbies."
The highest-ranked Labour MP was Keith Hill, the Minister for London, who had an impressive 91per cent voting record and below-average expenses.
Clare Ettinghausen, director of the Hansard Society, which promotes parliamentary democracy, said: "Our MPs are a very hard-working bunch. But it is very hard to measure how well they are doing their job. A lot of what they do in Parliament is not visible to voters."
