Lords claim £300,000 to take part in Zoom debates from home

LORDS claimed hundreds of thousands in taxpayers’ cash to take part in Zoom debates, a Sun probe has found.

Peers were paid £300,000 over 15 days of virtual proceedings from their own homes in the April and May lockdown.

A handful of Lords did attend the chamber, but most claims were for remote working.

Lords received £1,254 in car expenses and £350 for public transport, despite the Government urging people to work from home where possible.

Records show Labour’s Lord Foulkes claimed £9 for stamps, despite racking up £2,900 in allowances over both months.

Lord Kilclooney of Northern Ireland — worth around £23million — charged the taxpayer £205 for air travel and £50 for petrol.

And former deputy PM Lord Prescott claimed £71 for postage, but did not attend.

Stay-at-home MPs caused fury earlier this month by going ahead with a £3,500 pay rise.

John O’Connell, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Taxpayers who are feeling the pinch will be furious at the idea that well-heeled Lords are cashing in on the crisis.

“These allowances are meant to cover the costs of working in Westminster, not to offer peers huge hand-outs at home.”

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A House of Lords spokesperson said: “Members of the House of Lords are not paid a salary but may claim daily attendance allowance and limited travel expenses.

"When the House first moved to remote sittings and then hybrid sittings it was agreed that the rate of that allowance should be halved to reflect the new ways of working.

"The result of this is that the total amount of attendance allowances claimed in May 2020 was over 85% lower than in May 2019."


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