A government minister quits

Mark Simmonds has resigned as a government minister, and intends to leave parliament at the next general election.  Officially it seems that he was an under-secretary of state (the most junior rank of government minister) at the Foreign Office.  Nevertheless it is reported that he held the office of Minister for Africa, although I'm not entirely sure that such a government office is actually needed.

Mr Simmonds has complained about the cost of living in London, and says he does not earn enough to rent a family-sized property anywhere within central London.  As a result he rarely gets to see his family.  This quote is from The Telegraph website:

A spokesman for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority said: “Ipsa is awake to the impact on family life for MPs who have to live in two locations – in London and the constituency. That is why we provide more support to MPs with family or caring responsibilities.” 

An MP with three children like Mr Simmonds would be able to claim £27,875 a year “allowing them to rent a flat big enough to accommodate their children”, he said.

In other words it appears that Mr Simmonds is eligible for assistance with his rent of £2322 per calendar month.  I have just checked the Rightmove website, and have found four three-bedroom apartments within walking distance of the House of Commons which have a rent of lower than £2322, and I have found two more at a monthly rent of £2383.

It is also worth noting that many people who work in central London live a long way outside of Greater London, and commute long distances every day.  How many of these people can afford to rent a family-sized apartment in London?  How many of them can even afford to stay overnight in a hotel?

It is also worth noting that Mr Simmonds does not expect his family to live with him in London.  Instead he wants them to continue to live in his Lincolnshire constituency, but have the option of staying with him in London during school holidays.  In other words he wants taxpayers to provide him with a three-bedroom apartment in central London which for most of the year would be either standing empty or occupied by just one person.

Update: Mr Simmonds has now drawn criticism from two Labour MPs, as quoted here.

Related previous posts include:
An MP's fall from grace
A tale of two scumbags