Completely potty! MPs spend incredible £200k on PLANTS for Parliament
TAXPAYERS shelled out close to £200,000 so that MPs could enjoy well-tended potted plants, shrubs and trees in Parliament, new figures have revealed.
Over the past three years, MPs have racked up a gardening bill worth £194,984
In 2014/15, authorities spent £46,283 of public money on maintaining greenery in the eight-acre site, plus a further £19,483 on trees in the building that houses many MPs' offices, Portcullis House.
Another £951 was spent on indoor potted plants, figures obtained by Express.co.uk from the House of Commons show, bringing the total spend over the last financial year to more than £66,000.
That compares with £54,315 spent in the previous 12 months and £73,952 coughed up in the year before that.
Over the past three years, MPs have racked up a gardening bill worth £194,984 - equivalent to employing 10 extra nurses for an entire year.
Authorities must watch this bill very closely to ensure it doesn't become an ever bigger burden on hard-pressed taxpayers
Campaign groups have called on those holding Parliament's purse strings to clamp down on the huge cost of maintaining the Palace's shrubbery.
Dia Chakravarty, political director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "The grounds at Parliament of course need to be maintained, but the authorities must watch this bill very closely to ensure it doesn't become an ever bigger burden on hard-pressed taxpayers."
Portcullis House, home to many MPs, their offices...and pot plants
The inside of Portcullis House
The figure is likely to be even higher as it does not take into account spending by the House of Lords on greenery in the upper chamber.
It is not the first time Parliament's gardening policy has been scrutinised.
In 2014, parliamentary authorities were criticised for removing tree leaves by hand rather than allowing them to drop off naturally.
Greenery in the grounds of Parliament
Officials claimed 'pleaching' saved time rather than waiting for the leaves to fall and then picking them up.
Gardener Annabel Honeybun said at the time: "I am not picking leaves off the trees.
"I am cutting them individually down to the second bud so they keep their shape."
Top 10 Facts About Trees
And in 2012, MPs were criticised for spending around £400,000 to rent 12 fig trees to provide shade in Portcullis House.