Housing Minister Brandon Lewis defends £31,000 hotel claims

24 August 2015

The government's housing minister has defended claims of almost £31,000 for London hotel stays, despite owning a home in Essex.

Great Yarmouth MP Brandon Lewis spent nearly £15,000 last year on 99 overnight stays and about £16,000 the year before, The Sunday Times, external reported.

Mr Lewis opted to stay in the capital rather than travel home to Essex, the paper said.

In a statement, he said all the claims complied with parliamentary rules.

A spokesman for his office said: "Every expense claim is entirely in accordance with the rules and approved by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)."

Privately, he is said to be "hurt" by the allegations.

Nearly all the stays were at the Park Plaza hotel, near Parliament, for which Mr Lewis would typically claim £450 for three nights and £750 for a five-night-stay.

The Sunday Times article claimed the housing minister had claimed for 99 overnight hotel stays last year

Analysis by Andrew Sinclair, BBC East political correspondent

There is no suggestion Mr Lewis has done anything wrong. As an MP for a constituency more than an hour away from London, he is allowed to claim expenses for either a second home, or for overnight stays in London. He has never claimed for his home in Great Yarmouth.

Friends who've spoken to him on Monday say he is hurt by the allegations. He says he often doesn't claim travel expenses and is often left out of pocket when he stays in London.

Fellow Norfolk MPs regard his claims as reasonable.

But other junior ministers in the last Government claimed far less for London hotels.

MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, Dan Poulter, claimed just £3,000, while colleague Norman Lamb, MP for North Norfolk, claimed £6,450 for hotel accommodation.

If you have friends or access to property in London you can reduce your costs.

Mr Lewis hasn't, and under the fairer revised expenses rules, he seems to be entitled to everything he claims.