Speaker demands €24k home facelift despite expenses pledge

NEW Commons Speaker John Bercow has ordered a £20,000 (€23,600) refurbishment of his grace-and-favour residence, it was revealed yesterday.

When he was appointed, Bercow pledged to forgo the £24,000 (€28,300)-a-year second home allowance as part of moves to restore trust in the wake of the expenses scandal.

But, according to the Daily Telegraph, he has now ordered a series of alterations, redecoration and new furnishings for his rent-free home at the Palace of Westminster.