£15m MP who claims £20,000 expenses for flat

A Labour MP worth at least £15million is charging expenses to taxpayers for the cost of running a second home in London.

Barbara Follett claims a Commons allowance worth up to £20,000 a year for the flat in Soho she shares with her husband, novelist Ken Follett.

MPs are allowed to claim back the extra cost of living in two homes if their seats are more than a short commute from Westminster.

Yet the Folletts' main home - a £2 million home - is in a commuter town only 30 miles from Westminster. And they own two further properties, in the Caribbean and Cape Town.

There is now growing concern that some MPs are abusing the housing perk, known as the additional costs allowance. Many are buying second homes instead of renting.

The taxpayer pays the mortgage interest but the MP keeps any profit after selling. One senior backbencher said: "Huge killings have been made in the property market. It's not right."

The issue will be highlighted tomorrow with the publication of the first register detailing how much each MP claims in expenses.

But the document will not disclose which MPs are claiming mortgage interest, the Evening Standard has learned, after a committee headed by Commons Speaker Michael Martin decided not to give out the information.

Ahead of the register's publication, the Evening Standard contacted more than 100 MPs in outer London and the Home Counties to ask whether they claimed additional costs allowance.

One of those who responded was Mrs Follett. Her office said she claimed and received the allowance, but would not reveal the amount or what it was spent on. She is entitled to spend the money on groceries, furniture and appliances, and to pay utility bills and council tax.

Most MPs use the allowance to cover rent, mortgage interest or hotel bills. But according to the Land Registry, Mr Follett bought the Soho property without a mortgage in 2000, after selling a ?3million house in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea. The Folletts - known at Westminster as "Barbie and Ken" - were once New Labour's golden couple before they fell out with Tony Blair.

Mr Follett has sold 60million books worldwide since 1975. Some estimates put the couple's wealth at more than £25million. Mr Follett is proud to be called a champagne socialist, telling friends: "I deserve both halves of the label." MPs who admit to claiming mortgage interest on second homes in London, even though their seats are in the capital's commuter belt, include:

By contrast, "commuter MP" Kelvin Hopkins saves taxpayers thousands of pounds by taking the train every day between Westminster and his home in Luton. A spokesman said: "He doesn't mind, even when the Commons sits until 10 at night. But at least he knows all about the problems on Thameslink."

Lib-Dem Sarah Teather, who lives in Brent East, is entitled to the money but said: "I don't claim. I don't feel it's justifiable as I live just half an hour away on the Jubilee line."

On top of the basic MP's salary of £57,485, members typically claim around £120,000 a year in expenses.