Minister in £42,000 payback while Tory claimed for a rope

Mrs Follett, who is married to best-selling author Ken and has repaid the money in full, said she made the claims – for security, telephone lines and insurance for artworks – in good faith but accepted the rules had been shown to be "vague and deeply flawed".

She said the expenses scandal had been a "sad and sorry episode in Britain's political life which I deeply regret".

Among the other notable revelations yesterday – as MPs desperately clung to the hope it would allow a line to be drawn under the scandal – were the discovery Iris Robinson returned a proportion of the cost of a 1,644.90 bed bought in January 2006. Mrs Robinson, who is married to Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson, recently quit as Strangford MP amid allegations that she made an improper loan to her toyboy lover.

Tory MP Anthony Steen, who gained notoriety at the height of the expenses scandal by insisting critics were "jealous" of his large house, has handed back 28.50 spent on a flagpole rope and binding. Sir Thomas Legg commented drily the items had been "claimed without evidence as to their necessity".

There have also been a number of payments made which are far in excess of that ordered by the Legg review.

Care Services Minister Phil Hope was asked to return 4,365.65 for excess mortgage interest payments and a series of other items including an electric razor. He actually paid, however, 42,674.13 last year after being heavily criticised for avoiding capital gains when selling a taxpayer-funded property.

In the case of Tory MP Peter Lilley, Sir Paul Kennedy wiped out a massive 41,057.36 repayment demand, saying he was "at a loss" to understand why Sir Thomas had levied it.

Mr Lilley obtained a loan from his wife to make a cash purchase of a second home in 2003, but declared the arrangement in full to the Fees Office and interest payments were lower than a bank would have charged.

Former Cabinet Minister David Blunkett said the series of independent reviews by retired mandarins amounted to "the Civil Service actually running the political system, rather than politicians".

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance pressure group, said: "In the past, MPs have tried to obstruct essential reforms and investigations. This time they should do as they are told – pay the money back and apologise to the public."