Hazel Blears MP

Hazel Blears Biggist fraud of the city, let go and alowed to walk free

In May 2009 The Telegraph reported that Blears had claimed the maximum allowable expenses, within one pound, for three properties, as well as for stays in hotels, £4,874 on furniture, £899 on a new bed and £913 on a new TV, the second such TV in under a year, and the maximum £400 a month in groceries. Further, Blears had not paid capital gains tax on profit from the sale of a London flat. The property was registered as her main residence with HM Revenue and Customs, but Blears had been claiming MPs' second home expenses relating to the flat. She had made a £45,000 profit on its sale without paying capital gains tax. On 12 May she volunteered to pay the £13,332 capital gains tax she had avoided on the sale of her 'second home. It was subsequently claimed that Gordon Brown had ordered her to repay the sum. The Daily Mail printed allegations that Blears 'flipped' her homes in London three times in one year. Flipping is the practice of switching which of two or more properties is designated an MP's second home. This allowed her to maximise her taxpayer-funded allowances.
In Salford she was met by a number of angry protesters and stayed in a local hotel rather than at home.
In June 2009 the Police at Scotland Yard and the Crown Prosecution Service issued a statement regarding MPs' expenses, which stated that they had not found evidence of criminal activity and that it was 'highly unlikely' that MPs would face charges. The Police said that the incidents of flipping second homes to avoid paying capital gains tax was not a matter for Police investigation. Following an investigation by Sir Thomas Legg, Blears was told to repay £225 in expenses in relation to a glass shelving unit for her London flat.