Croydon South MP Richard Ottaway requested a vote of confidence from his local party and on Thursday evening a make-or-break meeting took place over his expenses claims. After public outcry in Croydon at his extravagant expense claims for his second home in Bletchingley 21 miles away from the House of Commons his political career rested on the votes of local Tories. The Croydon Guardian, which had a mole inside, brings this exclusive report.
As I turned up at the shabby church hall in Sanderstead it seemed surprising I could be attending a meeting of real political consequence.
Upon entry I was handed Richard Ottaway's campaign literature which included a letter of personal support from David Cameron and my ballot paper.
I was then ushered into a packed hall and spotted our Member of Parliament for Croydon South milling about nervously. The average age of those attending must have been pushing seventy and it was unsurprisingly a very white, middle class affair.
The meeting was opened by Lord Bowness president of Croydon Central and South Conservative Federation. Mr Ottaway then rose from his seat to convince his local party members to allow him to fight the next election as their candidate.
He reminded the members of his experience, record, and that his expenses had not been flagged up by either the Daily Telegraph or David Cameron's own Scrutiny panel. His speech was long and comprehensive but did much to appease what was a generally sympathetic crowd.
Mr Ottaway explained the reasons why he had a second home and why he chose to live in Bletchingley.
He said: “When I won the constituency I was advised the last MP had lived in Bedfordshire and it was fine to live close by”.
He chose to live in Bletchingley over 11 miles from his constituency surgery office - a distance Mr Ottaway claimed to cover in just 12 minutes. Mr Ottaway stated it was nice to go home and change in between meetings and has “grown out of changing in public toilets”.
Mr Ottaway claimed he needed a second home because of the heavy workload at both ends.
He explained an MP's way of life is incomprehensible to those who have not done it. He said he works a six or seven day week and even works through the holidays.
He added: “It is a 70 hour week which puts considerable strain on your marriage”.
The yacht owner made the point he was not independently wealthy and needed the allowances to perform his duties effectively.
He used the allowance to “prevent the garden turning into a wilderness and an embarrassment”.
A woman in the audience questioned those motives and said: “Why we should have to pay because Richard chooses to live in a house with such large grounds”.
Mr Ottaway, a qualified solicitor, concluded his defence humbly: “I am very proud to serve Croydon South.”
Mr Ottaway's speech continued and he moved on to national issues, criticising the Labour Party and Gordon Brown especially in relation to their handling of the economy declaring it “the hand of history moment” and called for the party to “let me claim my part of what will be a defining victory”.
But by this stage people had begun to fidget.
In the question and answer session that followed the vast majority spoke in favour of Richard Ottaway which was greeted with appreciative applause. Though some local members did feel his “moral position was untenable”.
Some in the crowd declared they would not support Mr Ottaway as they considered the wider impact of his expenses on the borough especially in marginal wards and Croydon Central.
They thought his expense claims “were not in the spirit of the system” and they “didn't owe him a plum constituency”. Mr Ottaway dismissed these claim saying he considered fox hunting and the Gurkha issue to be of more importance to local people than his expenses.
Mr Ottaway also revealed 2010 would be the last election he would fight as by 2015 he would then be ready to “spend more time with his wife and yacht, not necessarily in that order” this was greeted with laughter.
Mr Ottaway's final contribution was that he had given his all and was “not perfect”. He “did not deserve to come down on this issue” and “cares about people and Croydon”.
He didn't have to hold this meeting but wanted to clear the air and didn't want to fight an election without their support. These closing remarks were greeted with muted applause. The secret ballot then began.
Mr Ottaway won the vote.
Afterwards members I spoke to thought Mr Ottaway's actions were brave but he should not assume this is a vindication of his expenses.
The local Conservative Association is not representative of the electorate at large and he will have to work especially hard to repair the considerable damage this saga has done to his reputation.
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