Angus SNP MP Dave Doogan and three Conservatives, including a UK Government minister, are being asked to repay hundreds of pounds in driving charges claimed on expenses.
Mr Doogan claimed for a £160 fine in January 2022, according to a report in The Independent.
The SNP said it was a “delayed” payment for London congestion charges which he is willing to repay.
He was named alongside Amanda Solloway, who is a minister in the UK energy department, in the expenses register.
Ms Solloway, the MP for Derby North, claimed back an £80 fixed penalty notice issued by Transport for London on July 2, 2020.
Tory MPs Simon Hoare and Bim Afolami also put similar claims through expenses.
Payment mistake
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) will contact them to ask for the money to be repaid – after it admitted that it had wrongfully allowed the payments to be made.
Asked for a response, an SNP spokesman for Mr Doogan said Ipsa covers the work travel cost of the London congestion/Ultra Low Emission Zone charge for MPs from constituencies outside London.
“A delay in payment resulted in an increased charge, which was claimed and approved by IPSA,” the spokesman added.
“If, in retrospect, Ipsa wish to reverse their decision to approve this claim then Mr Doogan looks forward to repaying it.
“Ipsa have not contacted Mr Doogan so far, however, so he has contacted them to ask for their advice on how to urgently reconcile this matter.”
A spokesman for the watchdog said: “MPs are not allowed to claim for penalty charges and fines under IPSA rules. Paragraph 3.26 of the Scheme of MPs’ Staffing and Business Costs clearly states that these fines are not claimable.
“IPSA’s checks failed in some cases to identify these claims and some of them were paid.
“We will contact MPs and ask them to repay, where appropriate. We have changed our process to ensure any future such claims are not paid, and will reiterate the scheme rules to MPs.”
The controversy comes after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak decided earlier this week not to launch an inquiry into Home Secretary Suella Braverman for attempting to get a private course to avoid points for a driving offence.
‘Clamp down’
Labour’s shadow Commons leader Thangam Debbonaire said: “Rishi Sunak must clamp down on the rule-breakers in his party and get on with delivering for the British people.”
The Ipsa register of MPs’ expenses shows that Mr Hoare, MP for North Dorset, claimed four times for £80 fines issued in November 2019.
Mr Afolami, MP for Hitchin and Harpenden, claimed for two £80 fines in December 2021.
He told the PA news agency: “(It was) Completely inadvertent. All money repaid the moment that I knew about it.”
A Cabinet Office spokesman said: “This would be a matter for the individual MPs and IPSA.”
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