DAME SHIRLEY PORTER, the disgraced Tory politician, has ended 12 years of exile in Israel by returning to London and buying a £1.5 million flat in Mayfair.

The former leader of Westminster Council masterminded the “homes for votes” scandal in the 1980s when good council homes were sold to prospective Tory voters in key wards, in order to stop Labour getting into power.

In 2001 Dame Shirley was ordered to pay a £22 million surcharge, which was the estimated cost to the Westminster taxpayer. But she consistently refused to pay and two years ago the authority accepted £12.3 million in settlement of her debt.

Dame Shirley, 76, took her case to the European Court of Human Rights after being found guilty of “wilful misconduct” for presiding over a policy to gerrymander votes by selling off council homes on the cheap.

Between 1987 and 1989, council tenants in Westminster were given grants of up to £15,000 to leave their homes, which were then sold to owner-occupiers. The poor and the homeless were then placed in wards where their votes would not matter, with many ending up in tower blocks where they risked asbestos poisoning.

The new owner-occupiers were thought to be more likely to vote to keep the Conservatives in power in what was viewed a “flagship” borough.

The “homes for votes” scandal was not Dame Shirley’s first brush with controversy. In 1987 she allowed three Westminster cemeteries to be sold for 15p to property speculators in an effort to cut maintenance costs. They were subsequently resold for £1.2 million but later bought back by Westminster for £4.2 million.

Dame Shirley, whose wealth in 2003 was estimated at £69 million and who was once reputed to be the 20th richest woman in Europe, has now been able to return without fear of arrest to live in Park Lane.

Paul Dimoldenberg, Labour group leader of Westminister Council, who is publishing a book about Dame Shirley next month, said: “I am surprised she is prepared to show her face in Mayfair. Whether Dame Shirley is in London or Tel Aviv makes no difference. What is important is that her former associates appear to be running Westminster Council in the same dictatorial and undemocratic style.”

Yesterday a spokesman for Westminster Council said: “The council agreed a settlement with Dame Shirley Porter following years of activity to recover the monies owed.

“Where Dame Shirley Porter chooses to live is a matter for her.”

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