(2009) Conservative M.P. David Wilshire -PARASITE

David Wilshire, a former Conservative whip, claimed thousands of pounds of taxpayers money for monthly payments towards the cost of replacing curtains and carpets at some point in the future.

David Wilshire, MP for Spelthorne, had an arrangement with the Parliamentary Fees Office which allowed him to claim £66.66 a month for what he called the "share of renewal of carpets/curtains every 10 years" at his second home.

There is no documentation in his claims between 2004 and 2007 to show that he actually bought a replacement carpet or curtains during that period.

It suggests that Mr Wilshire was effectively being paid in advance by the fees office for items he would not have to buy for years to come.

His expenses claims show that he estimated he would have to spend £8,000 every decade replacing curtains and carpets. He then calculated what this would cost if the bill was spread over 120 months and claimed £66.66 a month.

Between April 2004 and December 2007 - when he stops them claims - the fees office paid Mr Wilshire £2,200 through the arrangement, even though no receipt for carpets or curtains were submitted.

Mr Wilshire used the same technique to claim for the cost of redecorating his apartment, which is just yards from Conservative Central Office and the Palace of Westminster.

Every month the MP claimed £83.33 for the "share of redecoration" - 1/60th of the £5,000 he estimated he would have to pay for redecoration every five years.

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