Details of MPs' expenses have finally been published online for the public to view – but crucial information which has caused a national outcry has been blacked out.
The House of Commons on Thursday, 18th June released tens of thousands of claim forms and receipts after weeks of controversy sparked after the details were leaked to a national newspaper.
Dozens of MPs across the country have been named and shamed for making excessive claims for household items and payments for mortgages which had already been paid off.
Our own MPs have not been immune from criticism, with the city's
Conservative MP Stewart Jackson named for claiming more than £300 to service his swimming pool at his second home in Broadway, Peterborough. The money has now been paid back.
Shailesh Vara, the Tory MP for North West Cambridgeshire, which includes the Stanground, Fletton, Woodston, Hampton and Orton areas of the city, was also named by The Daily Telegraph in connection with the expenses controversy. He denies any wrongdoing.
See your MP's expenses Full details of
expense claims made by Mr Jackson and Mr Vara and other local MPs in the Greater Peterborough area, can be viewed via www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/mpsexpenses.
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But anyone hoping to view the full details of any claims for themselves today faces a significant stumbling block, with House of Commons censors blacking out a large amount of information.
Addresses for MPs' second homes are hidden, making it impossible to identify so-called "flipping", where MPs switch the designation of their second homes to maximise their claims.
Also covered up are the names and details of people and companies who received payments from expense claims, as well as letters exchanged between MPs and the Commons Fees Office.
What the Parliamentary records do show, however, are details of how much was claimed by MPs between 2005 and 2008, as well as how the money was spent.
In the financial year to April 2008, Mr Jackson claimed a second home allowance of £22,000 out of total expenses of £137,000.
One of his most recent published claims was in December 2007, when he claimed £2,593 for his second home in Peterborough, including £1,509 on mortgage payments, £515 on bills and council tax and £569 on cleaning, maintenance and repairs.
Mr Jackson told The Evening Telegraph he planned to publish all his future claims online.
He said: "I believe that it is right that details of MPs' expenses have now been published.
"As (Conservative leader) David Cameron has said, the expenses needed reforming as, in hindsight, the rules were too lax and were not seen as reasonable.
"I look forward to working within a system which is fair, transparent and does not preclude people from modest backgrounds serving in Parliament, but is acceptable to the general public."
Mr Vara claimed a second home allowance of nearly £23,000 in the year to April 2008, out of total expenses of £134,000.
His most recent claim was for £8,210 spent on mortgage payments between April and May 2007.
Mr Vara, whose constituency home is near Sawtry, said he was happy for his constituents to view his expense claims.
He said: "I welcome all our expenses being put online, and I firmly believe that the public have a right to know how their money is being spent."
Mr Vara added that the censoring of certain details of MPs' claims was necessary to protect confidential information, such as bank account details.
