New Labour MP Living In London Student Accommodation For £80 Per Night

A new Labour MP has been living in £80-per-night student accommodation since the election to get the best value for money for taxpayers.

Patrick Hurley, Labour MP for Southport, told PoliticsHome he had been staying in a small apartment used for university students at the London School of Economics (LSE) since being elected on 4 July.

He has lodged there for three nights a week and said he has plans to move somewhere on a more long-term basis after party conference season finishes at the end of September.   

An MP will usually live in two properties to help them work from both Westminster and their constituencies, and will use expenses to pay for their property in London.

The Southport MP said he preferred to see his accommodation as a “box" as opposed to a second home. He said it was not his long-term plan to stay in the room for the entire Parliament, and was not ideal for a 50-year-old who was planned to travel to and from Westminster every week from his constituency.

“What I found is that at LSE, while the students aren’t there throughout the summer, they rent out rooms to overwhelmingly [holiday-goers] but also anybody that wants a room for the night. And the rates, I'll be honest, the rates are cheap as chips,” he said.

“For a few weeks over the summer, and a few weeks up until the conference recess is over, I was quite happy to do that, and make sure that the taxpayer isn't on the hook for excessive expenses,” Hurley said.

The Labour MP said he has been living alongside families, who were renting out rooms during the summer holidays. He said before travelling to Parliament in the morning he regularly picks up a sausage sandwich from the canteen.

“It’s almost like a Butlin’s in central London, which wasn’t what I was