British politicians face the biggest clampdown on their expenses system since the 1970s after a report said they should no longer be able to claim for mortgage costs on their second homes and employ family members.
Members of Westminister should only be reimbursed for rent or hotel costs and claims should be limited to basic living expenses, Christopher Kelly, chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, said today.
Those who represent districts within "reasonable" commuting distance of Parliament should no longer be entitled to second home allowances.
With a general election no more than seven months away, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he accepted the report and expected a new Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) to implement it.
Mr Brown ordered the review after newspaper revelations of claims ranging from pornographic movies and a floating home for ducks to the cost of clearing a moat caused a public outcry.
The recommendations "strike a balance - on the one hand ensuring that MPs are properly supported and fully reimbursed for necessary costs incurred in doing their important work and on the other providing strong safeguards for the taxpayer to prevent the abuses of the past," Mr Kelly told a news conference.
Politicians are currently allowed to claim for mortgage payments on their second homes to allow them to carry out their duties between London and the district they represent.
Some "flipped" the designation of their second home, allowing for claims to be made twice.
This practice will no longer be possible, and any capital gain made during a "transitional period" of one Parliament or five years will be surrendered to the public purse, Mr Kelly said.
Bloomberg/Reuters