MPs told to repay €1.2m

British MPs have been ordered to repay more than £1.1 million (€1.26m) in allowances following a review prompted by last year’s expenses scandal.

Thomas Legg, who carried out the review relating to MPs’ second homes, said the system was deeply flawed.

“Taken with the prevailing lack of transparency and the culture of deference, this meant that the Fees Office’s decisions lacked legitimacy; and many of them were in fact mistaken,” he said.

Just over half of the 752 MPs and former members reviewed have been asked to make repayments – with the single highest sum being over £42,000 (€48,000), he added.

Payments in excess of £2,000 (€2,293) a year for cleaning and £1,000 (€1,146) for garden maintenance were ruled to have been disproportionate.