Westminster Accounts: Powerful group of Tory MPs scrutinised by expenses watchdog after Sky News investigation

A powerful group of northern Tory MPs are being scrutinised by the parliamentary expenses watchdog after a Sky News investigation into the way they use public money.

The investigation found nearly two dozen MPs received political donations from a private donor to help them with campaigning – weeks after they joined the Northern Research Group (NRG) and authorised thousands of pounds of taxpayer-funded expenses to be spent on its work.

This raises questions about whether MPs authorised public funding to be spent on the NRG because they knew they would be rewarded with a campaign donation.

The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA), the expenses watchdog, is examining whether the group “contravened the rules surrounding direct payment of subscriptions from MP business cost budgets”.

One Tory MP who received the money told Sky News they signed up to the NRG, putting public money towards it, because they knew they would get a donation.

“There was a deadline. That’s why so many did at the same time. You knew there’d be money at the end of it,” they said.

Public money is given to MPs to fund staffing and building costs, and its spending is tightly controlled. Political donations come with far fewer restrictions and, importantly, can be used to fund re-election campaigns.

The donations were organised by the NRG founder Sir Jake Berry and came from northern broadband firm IX Wireless. Mr Berry denied a link between the donations and the use of public money for the NRG.

In 2021 and 2022, 24 MPs received money from IX Wireless; 22 of those MPs have previously diverted public money to the NRG.

In the case of Matt Vickers, Tory MP for Stockton South, he authorised £2,500 from his office allowance to go to the NRG in mid-June 2021. Three weeks later, he was the recipient of a £2,500 campaign donation from IX Wireless. Mr Vickers did not respond to a request for comment.

However, in an interview, Mr Berry denied a link between the donations and public funding decisions, as did other Tory MPs who spoke on camera to Sky News.

Mr Berry said: “It is completely wrong when businesses want to go out and support northern MPs who are transforming the business community for them, for those businesses then to be trashed in the media for doing something completely legal and straightforward.

“There is no connection between your membership and receiving political donations.”