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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| MPs claims 'on sale for £300,000' | MPs claims 'on sale for £300,000' |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Details of MPs' expenses receipts are being offered for sale for up to £300,000, it has been claimed. | Details of MPs' expenses receipts are being offered for sale for up to £300,000, it has been claimed. |
| Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell, who sits on the Speaker's Commons Estimates Committee, told the BBC the committee was investigating the reports. | Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell, who sits on the Speaker's Commons Estimates Committee, told the BBC the committee was investigating the reports. |
| Sir Stuart said the claims of about 650 MPs are thought to have been for sale. | Sir Stuart said the claims of about 650 MPs are thought to have been for sale. |
| In the wake of a string of allegations about MPs' expenses, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has suggested scrapping MPs' controversial second-home payment. | In the wake of a string of allegations about MPs' expenses, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has suggested scrapping MPs' controversial second-home payment. |
| Sir Stuart told BBC's Newsnight programme: "All of the receipts of 650-odd MPs, redacted and un-redacted, are for sale at a price of £300,000, so I am told. | Sir Stuart told BBC's Newsnight programme: "All of the receipts of 650-odd MPs, redacted and un-redacted, are for sale at a price of £300,000, so I am told. |
| "The price is going up because of the interest in the subject." | "The price is going up because of the interest in the subject." |
| It may be a theft, but we will get to the bottom of it. In the public interest Sir Stuart Bell | It may be a theft, but we will get to the bottom of it. In the public interest Sir Stuart Bell |
| Asked who was trying to sell the information, Sir Stuart replied: "Well we have a pretty good idea of not the person, but the source, and that is a subject of a House of Commons investigation." | Asked who was trying to sell the information, Sir Stuart replied: "Well we have a pretty good idea of not the person, but the source, and that is a subject of a House of Commons investigation." |
| "It's probably a breach of the Official Secrets Act," Sir Stuart said. "It may be a theft, but we will get to the bottom of it. In the public interest, by the way." | |
| Newspapers have reported a string of allegations about MPs' expenses in recent weeks, fuelling speculation that information might be being leaked by officials within Parliament. | Newspapers have reported a string of allegations about MPs' expenses in recent weeks, fuelling speculation that information might be being leaked by officials within Parliament. |
| Further anger | Further anger |
| The allegations have prompted calls for a reform of the additional costs allowance, which covers the cost of an MP staying away from their main residence to perform their parliamentary duties. | The allegations have prompted calls for a reform of the additional costs allowance, which covers the cost of an MP staying away from their main residence to perform their parliamentary duties. |
| The row intensified when official figures showed the total amount claimed by MPs went up 6% in 2007-8, to just over £93m. | The row intensified when official figures showed the total amount claimed by MPs went up 6% in 2007-8, to just over £93m. |
| In a letter to the independent Committee on Standards in Public Life, which is looking into MPs' pay expenses, Mr Brown has now urged it to consider replacing the existing payment with a "simpler overnight allowance" that would be independently determined. | In a letter to the independent Committee on Standards in Public Life, which is looking into MPs' pay expenses, Mr Brown has now urged it to consider replacing the existing payment with a "simpler overnight allowance" that would be independently determined. |
| He also suggested that all London MPs should receive the same allowance, ending the current distinction which allows those in outer London to make the additional claim for a second home. | He also suggested that all London MPs should receive the same allowance, ending the current distinction which allows those in outer London to make the additional claim for a second home. |
| In his letter to the committee's chairman Sir Christopher Kelly, Mr Brown said: "I would be grateful if you could look to both start and conclude the review earlier than previously indicated to allow us to make progress on the issue as soon as practical". | In his letter to the committee's chairman Sir Christopher Kelly, Mr Brown said: "I would be grateful if you could look to both start and conclude the review earlier than previously indicated to allow us to make progress on the issue as soon as practical". |
| Additional costs | Additional costs |
| The prime minister's intervention came after allegations about allowances claimed by ministers involved Employment Minister Tony McNulty and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. | The prime minister's intervention came after allegations about allowances claimed by ministers involved Employment Minister Tony McNulty and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. |
| MPs can claim a maximum of £23,083 in such costs every year, including those who live in outer London. | MPs can claim a maximum of £23,083 in such costs every year, including those who live in outer London. |
| It emerged that Mr McNulty claimed the allowance towards his parents' home in Harrow which he used in addition to a flat in central London. | It emerged that Mr McNulty claimed the allowance towards his parents' home in Harrow which he used in addition to a flat in central London. |
| Ms Smith was criticised for claiming more than £116,000 in allowances for her family home in the West Midlands after nominating her sister's property in London - where she stayed several nights a week - as her main residence. | Ms Smith was criticised for claiming more than £116,000 in allowances for her family home in the West Midlands after nominating her sister's property in London - where she stayed several nights a week - as her main residence. |