Kelly report

We were supposed to be kept waiting for the report by Sir Christopher Kelly on MP's expenses until next week. Party leaders have seen an advance copy and someone in a party office has leaked some details. It is unfortunate that we do not have a complete picture.

Two things do apparently stand out:

1) In future MP's spouses and close relatives will not be able to be employed as secretaries, researchers, etc. This one has attracted some real anger, partly because some have performed this function efficiently for many years and partly because it means they could spend more time with their spouse.

The problem here is the advantages taken to pay over the odds for very nominal duties in some cases.

I do not have a problem with paid family work, so long as a maximum is set and the work is actually done. In future MPs will presumably have to recruit someone from outside the family and provide them with office, national insurance, pension contributions, etc. I am not sure that any money will be saved.

2) In future there will be no payment of mortgage interest on second homes. This seems eminently sensible. A close family member flies out to Germany every week and stops three or four days, with all expenses paid by his company. He wouldn't expect to receive untaxed help to buy a house there although he has been doing this for three years. Nor would anyone else who works in the private sector. They expect to have all expenses of being away to be covered by their employer.

Why should MPs be different? Why should they be helped to buy a permanent asset, when everyone else is paid expenses? I suspect that spouses like to have a London pad for family use, as well as a valuable asset for sale later. What is required is an arrangement for MPs to be refunded for accommodation for the three nights which most of them spend in London. To avoid any other scams, perhaps the government could buy some property, (- Olympic flats after 2012?), and let them free for MP overnight use.

With some doubt about the spouse employment proposal, I welcome what Sir Christopher is doing.