23 MPs 'given refunds after paying back expenses'

A Cabinet minister who paid back more than £1,800 in Commons expenses - including £4.47 she claimed for dog food - received some of her money back, it was disclosed.

The News of the World said Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan was one of 23 MPs who received a total of £42,000 in refunds on expenses which they paid back after the scandal broke last year.

A spokesman for Mrs Gillan, the Tory MP for Chesham and Amersham, confirmed she received a payment of £4.47 - the exact amount which she claimed for the three cans of dog food.

However, he insisted the refund by the Legg Committee - which reviewed all MPs' expenses - related to a separate repayment she made of £1,884.23 after over-claiming for her mortgage.

"Mrs Gillan repaid £1,884.23 earlier this year following a review of MPs' expenses," the spokesman said.

"She was subsequently contacted by the Legg Committee informing her that based on their own calculations there had been an overpayment of £4.47 and this money could be returned.

"How this figure was reached is a matter for the committee."

The disclosure that ministers are receiving refunds on money they paid back - however small the sums - is likely to concern Prime Minister David Cameron who has made strenuous efforts to draw a line under the expenses scandal.