I have had a lot, and I mean a lot, of e-mails and calls from people today relating to the expenses scandal which is presently engulfing Elliot Morley and, by extension, Ian Cawsey. People are really angry about this and the other revelations which have appeared.

For those who don't know, the crux of the local scandal is this - Elliot Morley claimed for a mortgage which had been paid off over a year before. He flipped his second home and also rented his London flat out to his very good friend Ian Cawsey who then claimed thousands of pounds of taxpayers money to pay to Mr Morley in rent!!! According to the story on the BBC website, both MPs were apparently claiming on the same property for a few months.

I just cant believe that one MP is allowed to claim taxpayers money to pay to another MP, who also happened to be a close friend and former employer of the MP, by way of rent without any external oversight or audit!

I am sure the system allowed this to happen and the arrangement was within the rules but it is absolutely clear that these sorts of arrangements have got to end!!

Just last week, I highlighted how Ian Cawsey and Elliot Morley had jointly used their expenses to take out a paid advert in the local press promoting themselves courtesy of the taxpayer. It would appear that that was not the only arrangement they had with each-other involving taxpayers cash.

It would be easy to be cheap about this scandal but I shall resist that opportunity. I don't think MPs of any of the parties have come out of this issue well. My solution would be to scrap this whole system and strip them of the power to set their own salaries and expenses. This power should be given to an independent body who should decide on a new system which would also require MPs to publish their claims on the internet on a monthly basis.