MPs' EXPENSES: Byers and the girlfriend
Former Transport Secretary Stephen Byers claimed for a flat where he lives rent-free
Former Cabinet minister Stephen Byers claimed more than £125,000 for a London flat owned by his girlfriend where he lives rent-free.
The ex-Trade and Transport Secretary has spent £27,000 of public money during the past five years on redecorating, maintenance and appliances at the home he shares with Jan Cookson.
Lawyer Miss Cookson, his partner of 22 years, bought the flat in 1982.
She does not have a mortgage on the property, meaning under Commons rules Mr Byers cannot claim interest charges on monthly loan repayments, as many MPs do.
But between 2001 and 2008 Mr Byers claimed a total of £126,648 on the property in second-home expenses.
Mr Byers, a close ally of Tony Blair, also shares with his partner a semi-detached house worth £400,000 in his North Tyneside constituency, which they bought together in 1996.
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