You know, Suella Braverman might have a point about benefit scroungers after all. Because we certainly can’t be having taxpayers footing upwards of £45,000 in utility bills for just one household – even if that happens to be the case for Mrs Braverman herself.
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Suella Braverman ridiculed for taxpayer-funded water guzzling
As reported by The Mirror this weekend, a Freedom of Information Request filed by the Led By Donkeys campaign group churned out some astonishing figures. Though the Reform MP insists that all rules have been followed through the correct channels, her decision to expense the costs has caused uproar.
Information provided by her water supplier confirms that, between June to November 2024, the Bravermans used just over 1,500 litres of water per day, which equates to more than four times – or 368% – of the expected water usage from a similar-sized household.
That only really scratches the surface, however. The FOI Request also confirms that Suella Braverman has claimed for £45,000 on expenses to pay for utility bills between 2017 to 2025. It’s also understood the former Tory was able to claim more than usual, by stating the property also served as her home office.
Anti-benefits MP takes £45,000 from public purse to pay her bills
Braverman was therefore able to claim a maximum allowance which extended to £7,300 per year. Again, there’s no suggestion of any criminality or legal wrongdoing – but with the Reform firebrand being an outspoken critic of the benefits system, there’s certainly an air of irony surrounding all this.
The MP for Fareham and Waterlooville has a strong catalogue of anti-benefits sentiment on the public record. In the last few years, she has suggested that there are ‘too many working-age Brits’ who choose to rely on benefits, while lashing out at the ‘Benefits Street culture’ she perceives exists the UK.
And, earlier this month, Braverman told The Telegraph she was from a family that is ‘too proud’ to claim from the state.
Her advocacy for a much smaller welfare bill is vastly undermined, however, by Suella Braverman’s own attitude towards the handouts she is able to claim. Who knows, perhaps if poorer claimants were trying to run the equivalent of 18 baths a day, she might have a little more sympathy for them…