Two Jags To Stay In Grace-And-Favour Apartment After Resignation
When I blogged about John Prescott being released from hospital after his pneumonia and going to his grace-and-favour apartment in Admiralty House, I said: “Well, just so long as he is out of his grace-and-favour apartment in just over two weeks [on 27 June when his resignation comes into effect], it’s fine.” But now it appears that he won’t be leaving the apartment which we, the taxpayers, have provided for him for ten years:
“JOHN PRESCOTT is to be allowed to remain in his grace-and-favour flat at Admiralty House in Whitehall after leaving the government this week.
The deputy prime minister, who is recuperating after a bout of pneumonia, has privately agreed with Sir Gus O’Donnell, the cabinet secretary, that he can stay temporarily while he looks for alternative accommodation in London…
The unusual arrangement to stay on is set to be challenged as the flat is estimated to cost the taxpayer £100,000 a year. Tax experts claim he should face a hefty bill on the accommodation as he can no longer claim it is an essential perk of his job.
Whitehall sources said last week that the arrangement was temporary as Prescott, who announced his resignation last September, had yet to find new accommodation… [since] his property search in the capital has been delayed by his illness.” (The Times)
Why has he taken this long to start to look for accomodation? He has known that he would be leaving since September, for crying out loud - and the specific date for more than seven weeks. So why has he not looked for accomdation earlier? Also, since he must have had a place in London before he became DPM, why did he sell that in the first place, and not just rent it out whilst living in government property?
If Prescott stays in Admiralty House after 27 June, he should pay at least the market rate rent on the apartment. When Prescott’s resignation comes into effect on 27 June, he is no longer part of the government, and no longer has any right at all to the use of government-owned property.
He must leave on that day or pay the full rent, either directly to the government’s coffers or as a donation to good national charity, for the extra time spent there. If he does not, he is thumbing his nose at the British public as he lives off of our purse even when he no longer has even the job of DPM to provide even the slightest justification for it. Prescott can move into a hotel, a rented place, or even onto the streets for all I care, but on 27 June he must be out of his grace-and-favour apartment.
UPDATE: It appears that the Blairs are to do the same, staying in Chequers after 27 June and Tony’s resignation [via Dizzy].
Source: The Times
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Well, he was obviously too busy with his duties as DPM to look for somewhere to live.
All his duties including …. erm …. highly important duties such as ….
Might need a while to finish this…
Perhaps Pauline doesn’t want him in the marital home? It’s appalling that he and the Blairs, all perfectly capable of delegating staff to arrange their post - office accommodation and of paying for it, should take the tax payer for a ride like this.
I didn’t pick on this earlier. That must be an abuse of position - or lack of it.