SANDRA Gidley has defended her expenses and allowances claims after she was revealed as one of Hampshire’s costliest MPs.

Statistics published on Monday by the Commons authorities showed that the Romsey MP had claimed a total of £159,636 in 2007-8.

It comes after figures showed MPs in the South claimed almost £2m of taxpayer’s money last year. A spokesman for Mrs Gidley said money had been spent on extra cover for staff sickness and added that the outlay on postage alone demonstrated the hard work in responding to constituents.

The MP said: “I claim only what I need to serve my constituents. All this money, or the vast bulk of it, never goes anywhere near an MP. It pays staff.

“The question people should really be asking is if MPs are using very little of their allowances are they doing their job properly?”

Winchester’s Mark Oaten claimed £155,911. The claims of both Mrs Gidley and Mr Oaten, along with those of Southampton Itchen’s John Denham (£154,260) and Basingstoke’s Maria Miller (£152,888), all exceeded the national average of £144,176. Expenses and allowances claimed by MPs go towards the cost of staying away from home for parliamentary business, postage, travel, stationery and office bills.

At the other end of the league, and among the 10 least expensive MPs in the UK, was New Forest West MP, Desmond Swayne, who claimed £94,753.