MP probes Whitehall spending on chairs and wine
By Ned Simons - 28th July 2010
Ever wondered what the five most expensive chairs in Whitehall are? No? Well Tory MP Matthew Hancock wants to find out.
A member of the Commons public accounts committee and former chief of staff to George Osborne, the newly elected MP has asked ministers how much money has been spent on buying chairs since 1997, and what the five "most expensive" were each year.
Answers to the flood of parliamentary questions submitted by Hancock on the last day before the summer recess - 116 in total- may also provide new Coalition ministers with useful lines when questioned on their departmental spending.
A tactic used to great effect by housing minister Grant Shapps, who rebutted a question from his Labour predecessor John Healey on how much he was spending on England flags for the world cup by reminding him that the department for Communities and Local Government spent £134,503 last year buying "luxury Parisian sofas".
And the less said about the three "ergonomic chairs" that DfID "lost" last year at a cost of £1,461 the better.
Hancock is also rooting around to find out how much each department has spent on staff expenses and what the ten largest expenses claims were in each year since 1997.
And he wants to know how much wine has been bought and how much has been spent on taxis.
With an average cost of £154, the total price tag of answering Hancock's questions could be £17,864. You could buy a really nice chair for that.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd