A landmark ruling by the House of Lords is likely to result in no action being taken against 20 members of the House,including NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul,whose claims on home expenses had been called into question in recent weeks. Both houses of Parliament,the House of Lords as well as the Commons,have been embroiled in a major controversy over allowances claimed by a very large number of members from all major parties. The controversy had resulted in the resignation of some ministers. In a judgment,Michael Pownall,the Clerk of the Parliaments,a senior civil servant who has been asked to investigate the allegations,has stated that there was no definition of the main address in any of the guidance given to peers. Lord Paul,a prominent Labour supporter and a friend of Prime Minister Gordon Brown,was dragged into this controversy after newspapers reported that he had claimed 38,000 pounds as parliamentary expenses by showing a one bedroom flat outside London as his home between 2004-2006 although he acknowledged that he never slept there. Lords can claim 174 pounds every night for attending Parliament if they reside outside London. Paul promptly requested the House of Lords for an investigation into the media allegations against him and chose not to function as Deputy Speaker till it was over. His request has been accepted. The British media reported today that this loophole means that all the peers would get off the hook. New rules to define the main home are likely to be framed. Pownalls ruling came with regard to a complaint against a Liberal Democrat peer Lord Rennard that he had claimed 41,000 pounds by designating a flat in Eastbourne as his main home when he continued to have a house in Stockwell,South London,which had previously been given as his main home. Pownall did not uphold the complaint in the absence of any definition of main home."
