HILLSBOROUGH MP Angela Smith has defended herself after being challenged by a political opponent over her vote against changes to Westminster expenses.
Tory Dr Spencer Pitfield, standing against Ms Smith in the new Penistone and Stocksbridge seat at the next general election, wrote her a letter questioning her decision.
But Ms Smith said she opposed the changes because they also proposed an extra
payment to reward MPs for attending Parliament.
MPs have been slammed for allowing themselves to claim up to £24,000 a year for additional costs of running a second home. Through the allowance, politicians could buy items such as new kitchens and televisions from an approved list.
Changes proposed by a House of Commons committee would have seen the allowance limit cut to £19,600 a year and ban its use for the purchase of furniture, but they were not approved when put to a vote. Opponents included Ms Smith and other South Yorkshire MPs.
In his letter to Ms Smith, Dr Pitfield said: "I was surprised you decided to vote against reforms of the expenses system in Parliament.
"I believe that, when Parliament has been under fire in the way it has been over the last few months, it is essential our leaders set the right example." But Ms Smith said she voted against the change not because she was against reducing expenses but because it also proposed a £30-a-day payment for attending Parliament, which she described as a "pay increase via the back door".
Ms Smith said: "The Tory attack on my voting record misses the point.
"The revisions would have effectively put an extra £4,200, tax-free, in MPs' pockets. Moreover, any MP could spend that £4,200 as he or she wanted - on furniture, clothes, even holidays, without having to account for it.
"The Tories should be ashamed of trying to make political capital out of an honest decision to resist changes I believe would do nothing to improve confidence in our democratic process."
She added: "I'm actually in the process of replacing parts of the kitchen and bathroom in the London flat out of my own resources. I think this underlines the clear distinction I've made between my own interests and financial position."
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