Baroness Adams is let off £4,000 expenses repayment

A peer is being let off repaying more than £4,000 in expenses she was found to have misclaimed, it was revealed today.

The Commons Commission has signalled that Baroness Adams' disputed debt will be written off because it is too difficult to make her to hand the money back.

The review, carried out by Sir Thomas Legg in the wake of the expenses scandal, decided that the Labour politician had not provided adequate proof for £4,110 of spending on mortgage interest.

But Baroness Adams of Craigielea, who was MP for Paisley North before joining the Upper House in 2005, insisted that the claims were valid.

She warned she would fight the parliamentary authorities through the courts rather than repay.

There had been speculation that an attempt could be made to recoup the debt from Baroness Adams' attendance allowance or pension.

But the Commission effectively admitted defeat at a meeting last night.

The cross-party body decided to recommend to the Commons Clerk "that, in view of the failure of many attempts to persuade Baroness Adams to repay the sum of £4,110 recommended for repayment by Sir Thomas Legg, and the likely cost and difficulty of any further action, that sum should be written off".

PA