MPs can claim bin taxes on expenses

While families struggle to meet the cost of new pay-as-you-throw charges, politicians will be able to put the bills on their expenses.

The taxes are intended to persuade families to throw out less rubbish in the interest of encouraging recycling and fighting climate change.

But the good news for Westminster - revealed by Commons Deputy Leader Helen Goodman in a parliamentary answer - means MPs will not have to worry about cutting back on the waste they leave out.

The disclosure immediately provoked fresh criticism about the greed of MPs.

They are currently preparing to vote on whether to give themselves an inflation-busting pay increase.

Bin taxes were given the green light by the Government late last year amid scenes of confusion in Whitehall.

Gordon Brown first promised to block the taxes, then allowed them to go ahead.

One reason behind the Prime Minister's reluctance is that pay-as-you-throw charges will hit middle class families hardest.

They are likely to face bills of more than £100 a year.

MPs, however, will be able to claim their bin taxes back on their controversial expenses scheme, the Additional Cost Allowance.

This allows those with constituencies outside inner London to claim up to £20,902 a year to cover the costs of maintaining a second home.

Until 2004 ministers were unable to claim this allowance. Now, however, they can.

Children, Schools and Families Secretary Ed Balls and his wife,

Housing Minister Yvette Cooper, notably collected £32,000 towards running their London home last year.

MPs, whose salaries stand at £60,675, claimed an average of £135,800 each in various allowances last year.

Tory local government spokesman Eric Pickles said: 'Labour ministers are looking to impose a tax on hardworking families that they themselves won't have to pay.

"Gordon Brown's plans for these new bin taxes should be scrapped for everyone."

Matthew Elliott of the Taxpayers' Alliance said the decision smacked of "double standards".

"MPs should be liable for all the taxes and charges that ordinary members of the public are liable for and they should be paid directly out of their own pocket.

"Allowing MPs to pay their bin taxes using taxpayers' money isolates them from the burden of these new taxes.

"If they don't suffer like their constituents, they won't understand how unfair these new charges are."

Town halls also joined the protests.

A spokesman for the Local Government Association said: "There cannot be one rule for MPs and another for everyone else."

Local authorities are banned from imposing extra taxes on top of council tax but the Climate Change Bill currently before Parliament will give them the right to raise extra taxes for collecting rubbish for the first time.

Ministers have regularly referred to pay-as-you-throw charges as " incentives", "rewards" or even "save-as-you-throw".

However the Daily Mail reported last month that ministers had been forced to admit they are in fact a tax.

Treasury Minister Angela Eagle confirmed this yesterday.