The following MPs who are Cabinet ministers aren’t mentioned at all in the Telegraph’s coverage today:
John Hutton Harriet Harman Ed Balls James Purnell John Denham Yvette Cooper Jim Murphy
This means one of two things. Either their claims are so clean as to be not newsworthy or they are so juicy that the Telegraph is holding theirs back for special treatment. Looking down the list there are several people on it—notably Ed Balls, Yvette Cooper and James Purnell—whose expenses have already attracted some controversy.
The one Cabinet Minister whose standing has been in increased by this affair is Ed Miliband. In stark contrast to his brother, Ed Miliband only claimed £6,300 a year in rent for what the Telegraph calls a “modest home in his constituency” and utility bills and council tax. The likelihood of him winning the leadership after the next election has just increased.
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