Westminster authorities spent £100,000 on a lavish redecoration of the
grace-and-favour house for the officer who oversees MPs’ expenses, The Times
has discovered.
The property at 3 Parliament Street used by the Clerk, the Commons chief
executive, received a top-of-the range makeover, with a £39,000 kitchen,
bespoke furniture, including a “butler’s tray”, and granite work surfaces.
The same inventory also lists two Ionic columns costing £963.
The spending was not scrutinised by MPs on the House of Commons Commission and
has been criticised by members. The judgment of House of Commons officials
has already come under fire after it emerged that they allowed Sir Nicholas
and Ann Winterton to claim rent for a property that they owned outright.
The refurbishment work was mostly carried out in 2006, the year that Malcolm
Jack, the new clerk, took over, although some of the furnishings were
installed after his arrival in spring last year.
Parliamentary sources said that Dr Jack would have been consulted during the
makeover. The Clerk has sole use of 3 Parliament Street, worth £2.8 million
on the open market, according to parliamentary authorities.
A spokesman for Parliament denied in November that the refurbishment was
extravagant, telling a newspaper: “He has had a new kitchen, that’s all.”
But The Times has seen documents calling this assertion into question. The
extent of the overhaul includes:
- A new kitchen costing £39,146, including £2,694 for a granite work surface,
£4,974 for appliances and £971 for flat-screen kitchen television and
appliances.
- A guest bathroom for £4,652.
- A bespoke storage cupboard for £2,300, a Sherwood 2.5-seat sofa for £1,543
and black walnut Sherwood chairs for £3,666.
- A wood floor for £2,985, new carpets for £598 and a black slate hearth for
£1,500. Curtains for £4,758.
- A butler’s tray and lamp table for £1,835 and knife-pleat empire lamp shades
for £158.
The list also includes furniture polishing in the “patio area”, a ceramic
table lamp, a £1,095 “deep clean” and the upholstering of chairs.
Several entries on the itemised list say only “furnishings” or
“redecorations”. The total bill for spending on 45 separate items on the
property between March 2005 and June 2007 is £102,254.82.
The Clerk acts as accounting officer for expenditure in the House of Commons,
making him legally responsible for its budget and 1,600 employees. The
Finance and Administration Department, often called the “Fees Office”, is
answerable to both the House of Commons Commission and the Clerk as chief
executive.
Sources involved in the running of Parliament said that MPs who oversee the
administration of the Commons were not consulted on the refurbishment
because it fell below the threshold for matters to be referred to MPs. The
refurbishment would have been carried out by the works board, which
comprises officers of the House. Sources added that it was right to carry
out the refurbishment after the previous Clerk, Sir Roger Sands, left the
job, but expressed surprised at the cost. These disclosures could lead to
the threshold — of about £250,000 — being lowered.
This figure was reduced after MPs were not given the chance to approve the
£435,000 cost of a covered walkway that connects two buildings inside
Parliament. The parliamentary authorities refused last night to discuss the
refurbishment.
Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrat MP, said: “I have, sadly, formed the view
over many years that there is no proper scrutiny of expenditure within the
House.
“The House of Commons commission approves almost any Bill that comes before
them and it’s even worse. There are some Bills that appear to not even to
reach it. It’s clear that the House is writing itself blank cheques at the
taxypayers’ expense.”
The building at 3 Parliament Street is the largest property used by senior
officers, taking up 405 sq m (4,360 sq ft). Though only 6 sq m larger than 2
Parliament Street, occupied by the Serjeant at Arms, it is thought to be
worth £600,000 more.
When asked by an MP whether any consideration had been given to turning
accommodation at 2 and 3 Parliament Street and 4 Canon Row into office space
for MPs and their staff, the House of Commons Commission said that the
buildings were “structurally unsuitable for use as offices”.
In 1991 the services committee heard that the buildings were “frail and
vulnerable, giving rise to loading problems, even in standard office use”,
opening the way for the properties to be converted into residences.
The Serjeant at Arms told MPs in 2006 that part of the reason the buildings
were unsuitable for office use was because of their Grade 1 listing, meaning
that “there are very few opportunities for making structural changes which
would allow an increase in the number of rooms available”.
Many of the items could be obtained more cheaply. The Sherwood chairs can be
found online for about £160 each. Ikea’s “Egon” chairs, which are similar in
design, cost £55. The list also included two Ionic columns at a cost of
£963.50. The Featuredeco.co.uk website offered similar “Corinthian columns”
in fibreglass for £226 each.
3 Parliament Street
The house was thought to have been built in the 1750s after the thoroughfare
now known as Parliament Street was created in 1732 allowing for direct
communication between Whitehall and Westminister for the first time.
The Clerk of the House of Commons has sole use of 3 Parliament Street.
It would be worth £2.8 million on the open market. 3 Parliament Street is
thought to be most expensive property used by senior House of Commons
officers.
The Serjeant at Arms lives at 2 Parliament Street - worth £2.2million.
The Speaker's secretary has 4 Canon Row, with a market value of £1.6 million.
The Clerk, Dr Malcolm Jack, is the most senior official in the Commons and
advises the Speaker, Michael Martin, on rules and procedures. While he has
his own accommodation – the latest estimate suggest about 30 MPs are still
obliged to share offices because of a lack of space on the parliamentary
estate. Scores more have put their researchers and staff in separate offices
dotted around the Commons. Source: Times database
The bill:
Supply & fit kitchen in 3 Parliament Street £10,000
Ceramics table lamp & shade £466
Graphica (5927B/34) Natural GRA05002 etc & handling £1670.61
Supply & fit appliances £4,974
Curtaining 3 Parliament Street £1,244.32
Supply of lamp etc £1,040
Bespoke storage cupboard -Clerk’s Residence, 1PS £2,300
Redecorations to 3PS £2,038.92
Part redecoration works (3PS) £4,500
Sherwood chairs (black walnut feel) £3,666.38
Supply/fit polished black slate hearth etc. £1,500
Sherwood 2.5 seat sofa £1,543.30
Kitchen Furniture, LG LCD TV & delivery £971.06
Lamp table & Butler’s tray £1,835
Granite work tops £2,694.20
Kitchen works at 3PS £6,197.29
3PS internal redecorations £500
Work to Bespoke Fitment (3PS) £250
Sitting room wood floor (3PS) £2,985
3PS new kitchen works £5910.35
3PS Deep Clean £800
Deep clean to 3PS £295.75
Kitchen installation & other works as instructed £8,400
Other expenditure £30,760
Total £96,542.16
