The term “main home” has taken on a variety of meanings for London-based peers who wish to claim lucrative allowances intended for peers living outside the capital.
— For Lord Paul the main home is a concept — a one-bedroom flat in Oxfordshire he has never slept in, but could in theory turf the occupant out of if he wished to stay there. Pockets: £38,000
— For Baroness Thornton the main home is a bungalow in Yorkshire where her mother lives, rather than the £1m family house near Hampstead Heath. Pockets: £130,000
— For Baroness Uddin the main home is an empty and unfurnished flat in Maidstone which she hardly ever visits until she is quizzed by this newspaper. Pockets: £180,000
— For Baroness Morgan of Drefelin the main home is a Welsh holiday cottage 250 miles from the home in London, where she has lived all her life. Pockets: £140,000
— For Lord Taylor of Warwick the main home is his mother’s house in Solihull, which was sold to someone outside the family when she died several years ago. Pockets £70,000
— For Lord Sheldon the main home is his former house in Manchester which he gave to his son six years earlier. Pockets: £130,000
— For Lord Bhatia the main home is a rented flat just outside the M25, which is occupied by his brother and the address of which he could not remember. Pockets: £20,000
And the chief cunt in so-called charge is Baroness Hayman, the Lord Speaker. In 2001 she switched the designation of her main home from London to Norfolk while maintaining the same family home in the capital. This has enabled her to claim more than £200,000 in night subsistence allowances without breaking any rules.
Then there's the Noble Baroness Scotland, who has been claiming the allowance while blatantly living in Chiswick.
Maybe they can all have a get together at one of their 2nd homes, for a few drinks all served by former cruise ship waiter and MP John Prescott.
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