Tory leader Kemi Badenoch is under fire after billing taxpayers nearly £3,000 for electricity at her second home – despite her own government scrapping energy support for ordinary households when in government.
According to The Mirror, Badenoch claimed £1,800 in February 2024 for electricity at her countryside property in Kent – followed by a further £1,000 in March.
That’s despite the Energy Bills Support Scheme having ended in June 2023.
🏡 Full perks for a second home
The Kent property, which she shares with her banker husband Hamish, isn’t far from London – but Badenoch has also claimed the maximum level of Council Tax expenses for it, totalling nearly £4,000 last year.
She’s long been a cheerleader for a smaller state and less public spending – unless, it seems, the spending is for herself.
✈️ A pattern of claims?
This isn’t the first time Badenoch’s expenses have sparked criticism. In 2023, she reportedly asked for taxpayers to cover a holiday flight to the US while in government – a request that was denied by her department’s top civil servant.
🔌 One rule for us?
Critics say Badenoch’s electricity claims highlight a wider issue of hypocrisy in politics – where public cash is fine for personal luxuries, while the rest of the country faces rising bills and squeezed support.
So much for “we’re all in this together”.
You may also like: Watch: Mark Carney shuts down Trump at G7 – and it’s a power move for the ages
