Former MEP John Stevens, who is fighting the Buckingham seat against John Bercow as an anti-sleaze candidate, made over £212,000 in expenses for a non-existent constituency office.
Stevens, who received a total of over £252,000 for his 10 years as an MEP, only maintained a constituency office for 19 months after his first election, according to the official contact details published by the European Parliament. For the rest of his term - February 1989 until June 1999 - he listed his home address in Westminster, and his employers, Rothschild Asset Management, in St James's, London.
At the time, the general expenditure allowance, meant to cover the operating costs of a constituency office, were £2100 per month.
Stevens says on his anti-sleaze campaign website that "I pledge to only claim the essential travel and office expenses necessary for me to represent Buckingham at Westminster" and, of Bercow, "How can he preside over reform when he’s one of the guilty parties?".
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