MPs spend £38k of YOUR cash on language lessons – including £5k bill for ICELANDIC classes
SHAMELESS MPs have splurged more than £38,000 of taxpayers' cash learning foreign languages since 2010, Express.co.uk can reveal.
Brazen MPs have spent £38,000 on language lessons since 2010
Labour politicians have spent the most on private classes since David Cameron became Prime Minister, with nine MPs racking up an eye-watering £19,300 bill.
The SNP's Angus MacNeil took £5,300 from public coffers to learn Icelandic, while £4,550 went towards veteran Conservative Edward Leigh studying Italian.
And Labour's Joe Benton studied two different languages – French and Spanish – at a cost of £6,115 before stepping down this year.
MPs have been able to take language courses – arranged by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office – since 2001 if they help with their Parliamentary work.
The figures have provoked fury just months after it was announced MPs would be granted a pay rise of 10 per cent – taking their salaries to a whopping £74,000.
Dia Chakravarty of the Taxpayers' Alliance said: "This is a lot of money for language courses that many taxpayers couldn't afford for themselves.
"If MPs want to learn a language then they should pay for it themselves and not expect hard-pressed families to pick up the bill."
Dia Chakravarty of the Taxpayers' Alliance blasted the figures
After Labour, brazen Tory MPs were the next biggest spenders, leaving ordinary Britons with a bill of £11,240.
They included Jeremy Hunt, the controversial Health Secretary locked in a furious row over pay for Junior Doctors.
The millionaire, who is married to China-born Lucia Guo, took Mandarin lessons worth more than £2,500.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt took Mandarin lessons worth more than £2,500
When the figures for 2010-11 were originally made public, a spokesman for Mr Hunt claimed the lessons helped him welcome the Chinese president to Britain.
But during a 2013 interview, the 49-year-old suggested he was still struggling to get to grips with the language.
He told the Mail: "I have to start again with Mandarin because my parents-in-law don't speak English. I haven't got beyond 'Would you like a cup of tea?' yet, but they are lovely."
Skills Minister minister Nick Boles splurged £1,600 on Hebrew classes
And Skills Minister minister Nick Boles splurged £1,600 on Hebrew lessons after entering a civil partnership with Israeli Shay Meshulam.
He claimed taking the classes was "entirely proper" because of his "long-standing interest in Israel".
But he has since stopped taking them, saying: "I recognised that some people felt it was wrong for me to use taxpayers' money to learn a language that would also benefit me personally."
Liberal Democrat Greg Mulholland blew £1,200 while Plaid Cymru MPs took classes costing £1,410, according to data released under Freedom of Information laws.
Mr Mulholland – the party's former health spokesman – was left red-faced in 2009 when it was revealed he tried to claim for a cot and playpen on expenses.
And he went on to claim more expenses than any other MP in 2011-12 – almost £190,000, three times his salary.
The most expensive year for language lessons was 2011-12, when taxpayers had to cough up £12-280 – up from £6,100 in 2010-11.
See the full list of MPs who claimed YOUR money for language lessons...
Andrew Slaughter (Labour) – £540
Andrew Stephenson (Cons) – £275
Angus MacNeil (SNP) – £5,300
David Davies (Cons) – £644
Edward Leigh (Cons) – £4549
Eric Joyce (Labour) – £1600
Greg Mulholland (Lib Dem) – £2,703
Hywel Williams (Plaid) – £900
Jeremy Hunt (Cons) – £2573
Joan Ruddock (Labour) – £924
Joe Benton (Labour) – £6116
Linda Riordan (Labour) – £3934
Nick Boles (Cons) – £1607
Peter Luff (Cons) – £800
Robert Flello (Labour) – £1385
Robin Walker (Cons) – £301
Tim Yeo (Plaid) – £510
Tony Lloyd (Labour) – £1280