Legg inquiry shoots Brown in foot

In a midst of financial and climatic crises, never before have the nit-pickings of accountants been pored over with such ardour as in the great democracy that is Britain. One day after the opening of “the mother of all parliaments”, the British press and media is yet again in a righteous lather over MPs expenses’ claims. Amidst a barrage of front pages headlines, the Daily Telegraph leads the gloat-fest with the revelation that PM Gordon Brown must return £12,500 (€13,544) to the Treasury for “excessive claims for cleaning, gardening and decorating.” It was Brown himself who launched this summer an independent inquiry led by Sir Thomas Legg which has now led to more than 500 MPs being asked to provide further justification for their claims. Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg, has also been asked to repay £910 (€971) for his garden. Elsewhere, Conservative leader David Cameron, has shown little inclination for the soothing arts of husbandry and has only been asked to provide copies of his mortgage interest payments for 2006. It is debates like this which will weigh heavily on the electorate’s mind when Britain goes to the polls in 2010.