Hull Daily Mail: Criticism from pressure group as the bill from Parliament hits almost £90m

The bill for MPs' taxpayer-funded expenses reached almost £90m last year, figures show.   

Today, the TaxPayers' Alliance pressure group said MPs should be "ashamed" at the scale of their claims.   

Shahid Malik, Labour MP for Dewsbury and International Development Minister, submitted the biggest overall claim by an MP of £185,421, including £21,266 on postage.

Close behind were Home Office Minister Liam Byrne (Birmingham Hodge Hill) on £178,116 and Labour MP Joan Ryan (Enfield North), who claimed £173,691, despite representing a London constituency.

The lowest claimer was Philip Hollobone (Con, Kettering), who claimed just £44,551 followed by veteran Labour left-winger Dennis Skinner (Bolsover) with £67,891.

MPs claimed £87.6m for London housing, staff and office costs, travel, stamps, IT and stationery, about five per cent up on the like-for-like figure for 2005-06 and an average of £135,813.

But Liberal Democrat MP Nick Harvey, who sits on a committee that oversees expenses, insisted British voters got "excellent value for money" from their representatives compared with other countries.

MPs for seats outside central London can claim up to £22,110 a year for staying away from their main home to carry out their Parliamentary duties.

The others can take advantage of a London supplement of £2,712.   

Office costs can be reimbursed up to £20,400 and MPs enjoy a mileage rate of 40p a mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25p a mile thereafter.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown - who was still Chancellor of the Exchequer during the period in question - claimed a total of £135,525, which was £7,860 less than Tory rival David Cameron.