Errors by expenses watchdog 'portray MPs as dishonest'

The new Commons expenses watchdog was today accused of damaging Parliament's reputation by wrongly depicting MPs as dishonest.

Tory backbencher Adam Afriyie estimated that MPs and staff will spend 498 days a year correcting "mistakes and omissions" by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority.

Ipsa was accused of incompetence last month when several MPs were named as having their claims rejected when they were actually paid in full.

Former home secretary Jack Straw and Tory MP Jesse Norman were among those furious to see their names published against claims that were "not paid" when payments had been eventually agreed.

Windsor MP Mr Afriyie has estimated that 78 MPs and their staff were forced to spend an average of eight and a half hours correcting mistakes. If the same thing happened every two months when claims are published by Ipsa, this would equate to 498 days spent on "reputation management".

He said: "People were understandably angry about the MPs who cheated the old system, but it cannot be right that the Ipsa's mistakes and omissions are damaging the reputation of honest MPs and the British Parliament."

It is the latest blow to Ipsa, which has been attacked by MPs over its errors and red tape.

Yesterday it emerged the body had spent almost £300,000 furnishing its offices since being set up in the wake of the expenses scandal.

A spokesman for Ipsa said Mr Afriyie's assertions were not based on facts and said it had published only two mistakes among 46,000 claims with a total worth of £6.76million.