Ministers' 'Expenses' Prompt Explanation From U.K.'s Brown

LONDON -- The U.K. prime minister and several officials are embroiled in a public fray over their use of taxpayer funds to cover their expenses, giving rise to another embarrassment for Gordon Brown's government.

Mr. Brown was forced to issue an explanation Friday after a London-based newspaper, the Daily Telegraph, published details of the expenses he and other officials claimed while serving in Parliament.

The expenses, which are allowed under a system that reimburses members of Parliament for certain personal costs of doing their jobs, include toilet-seat repairs for a former deputy prime minister. They also include £6,577 ($9,911) in payments Mr. Brown made to his brother for cleaning services at the prime minister's London apartment. Mr. Brown's spokesman said the payments were passed on to the cleaner and didn't benefit the brother.

The expenses revealed in the news reports weren't filed only by parliamentarians from Mr. Brown's Labour Party. Some were from conservative members of Parliament, who sought reimbursements, including one for £134.30 for two table lamps with elephant motifs.

While the reimbursements don't appear to have broken any rules, their publication presents another headache for Mr. Brown, whose government faces rising voter resistance amid the recession.

In recent years, the U.K. has seen a series of political scandals over expenses, in which lawmakers have hired several family members as staff, or, in one case, submitted expenses for a spouse's pornographic movie rentals. Mr. Brown has made efforts to reform the system, and the government plans to publish four years of expense data in July.

U.K. rules allow members of Parliament to claim any expenses necessary for them to carry out their roles -- including the cost of maintaining a second residence for politicians with constituencies outside central London. Lawmakers are supposed to avoid extravagance, and their expenses must be approved by parliamentary officials.

Many of the expenses detailed in the Daily Telegraph involve politicians' second homes. Several cabinet ministers changed their designated second home several times in as many years, claiming thousands of dollars for refurbishments. Communities Minister Hazel Blears submitted expenses for £5,000 of furniture for second homes over a three-month period. Peter Mandelson, the business minister, billed taxpayers almost £3,000 for work carried out on his home a week after he announced his decision to step down from Parliament in 2004. A spokesman for Mr. Mandelson, who later sold the property, said all the work done was "necessary maintenance."

The triviality of some expenses could prove embarrassing for politicians. Foreign Secretary David Miliband's claim for a £199 baby stroller was rejected. Former deputy prime minister John Prescott had a toilet seat in his home repaired twice in two years at taxpayer expense. Spokeswomen for Messrs. Miliband and Prescott and a spokesman for Ms. Blears said they followed the rules laid out by parliamentary authorities. link...