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A CONSERVATIVE whip used his parliamentary expenses to refurbish a flat, and then used public money to help buy another Westminster property.

James Duddridge, the MP for Rochford and Southend East, said last week he spent about £7,000 renovating a property he had bought as an investment in 2001.

After the flat had been refurbished, Duddridge, whose main home is about an hour’s commute from London, switched his claims for accommodation expenses to a new £397,500 flat he purchased just a stroll from the Commons.

Duddridge, a former banker who lives in a large detached house in Southend with his family, said he had moved into his buy-to-let flat after being elected in 2005. However, after refurbishing the property he decided it was not spacious enough for his young family and bought a new property in August 2006.

“I bought the new flat for domestic reasons,” he said. “My wife was pregnant and the old flat wasn’t suitable for a baby. I paid the deposit and stamp duty for the new flat out of my own resources, and have not redecorated or bought any furniture for it.”

Duddridge is among more than 40 MPs who are now disclosing details of their expenses on their websites in the midst of a public outcry. One Labour MP is revealed to have claimed for oiling the decking at his London townhouse, while another submitted a £1,300 bill for two Persian rugs.

Items claimed include a £169 toaster, a £6 artificial flower, two framed prints of Rome for £258, a Siemens washer dryer for £908, scented candles at £1 each and four bags of potpourri at 50p each.

Among the MPs who have published their claims or allowed them to be inspected in their constituencies are: Roger Berry, the Labour MP for Kingswood, Bristol, who submitted bills of more than £15,000 for refurbishing a two-bedroom home in Southwark, southeast London. In 2005-6, he redecorated his kitchen and lounge, spending £5,305 on building work, plus £4,318.13 on new flooring.

The next year he claimed £1,626 for redecoration, including painting the bedroom and hall of his Southwark property and oiling the decking in his garden. He claimed £169 for a toaster, £979 for a television and £908 for a washer dryer.

Defending his claims this weekend, he said: “The toaster is not an all-singing, all-dancing one - it’s a type that will last for at least 10 years instead of something that won’t last.” Lynne Jones, the Labour MP for Selly Oak, Birmingham, claimed £1,300 for two Persian rugs for her London flat. The Commons fees office agreed to pay only £600 of the claim.

Jones also claimed more than £400 for pictures to hang on her walls in 2005, but a further £775 claim for pictures and framing was rejected in March 2006. John Robertson, the Labour MP for Glasgow North West, has claimed more than £16,600 for his one-bedroom flat in Dolphin Square, Pimlico, over the past three years without being required to provide a single receipt. He also made other claims supported by bills and documents.

Robertson’s claims without receipts were £10,300 for food, £5,700 for cleaning and £625 for window cleaning. Robertson said yesterday MPs were told not to put in receipts for food and cleaning bills.

The one shopping bill included in Robertson’s expenses is for a £575 trip to Ikea. His purchases included an artificial flower for £6, four bags of potpourri at 50p each and two milk frothers at 99p each. Kerry McCarthy, the Labour MP for Bristol East, claimed £4,500 for furnishing a one-bedroom flat. “These costs were because I was a new MP and I haven’t made claims for similar items since.”

Her claims included £1,326 on a Habitat sofa, £604 for a TV and DVD player, £170 for a mattress, £42 for picture frames and £76 on linen and cutlery.

Caroline Spelman, a Tory shadow cabinet minister, is one of the few MPs not to claim towards rent or mortgage. Her expenses did include a 12-month subscription to a satellite navigation service for £102.13 in 2005.

Richard Bacon, the Tory MP for South Norfolk, claimed £258 for two framed prints of Rome, £294.30 for nine cushions and £1,547.20 for curtains.

John Hemming, the Liberal Democrat MP for Birmingham Yardley, allowed his staff to claim food and sundries on office expenses. Claims included chocolate fudge cake, doughnuts, ice creams, crumpets, takeaway pizzas, hamburgers, croissants, a variety of biscuits, shaving oil, Nivea cream, a bike light and body wash. Hemming said he had not been aware of some of the itemised claims.

Tax inspectors are now thought to be scrutinising the claims. They will want to check MPs have not double claimed on items: first as parliamentary expenses and second as a deduction against their tax bill as an out-of-pocket expense.

Additional reporting: Steven Swinford and Marie Woolf.

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