Malik toldto apologiseover ringinsurance

FORMER Minister Shahid Malik has been told to apologise to Parliament for charging taxpayers for insurance for his wife’s 8,000 engagement ring.

The former Dewsbury MP, who lost his seat at the General Election, submitted an expenses claim for 235 for extra cover to insure the ring against accidental loss or damage and when it was away from his second home.

An investigation was launched following a complaint last year and Mr Malik repaid the money earlier this year. But yesterday a report by the Commons Standards and Privileges committee concluded he had broken Commons rules and gave him 10 days to apologise in writing, although it said it was “not a serious breach”.

It has emerged that during the inquiry Mr Malik blamed the Department of Resources – which processes expenses and has admitted it should not have allowed the claim – for failing in its “duty of care” to him.

Parliament’s Standards Commissioner, who carries out the investigation and then reports to the committee, criticised the former MP, who lost his seat to Tory Simon Reevell in May, for failing to respond to the complaint in time leading to the inquiry taking far longer than it should. He accused Mr Malik of “declining to recognise his personal responsibility”.

The committee also expressed “disappointment” that Mr Malik failed to resolve the matter sooner “and he caused the resolution of this complaint to be postponed until after the General Election”.

A spokesman for the former MP said: “Mr Malik accepts the Commissioner’s findings that it was an ‘inadvertent error’ but is understandably disappointed that he was not told this by those that administer and scrutinise the claims; nor by the Legg audit team who also approved the payment. He will happily abide by the committee's recommendations.”