Tom Ewart Smith
SIR Lindsay Hoyle is facing increasing scrutiny after revelations about his trips to Gibraltar and other luxury destinations.
Figures obtained by the Daily Mail show Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the UK government’s Speaker of the House of Commons, has cost the taxpayer over £15,000 on trips to Gibraltar.
The report claimed that since 2021, the MP for Chorley has spent £15,707.27 on visits to the overseas territory, where he stays at the luxurious Rock Hotel.
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Hoyle and his aides travel annually, usually at the start of December, for a graduation ceremony at the University of Gibraltar, as he is the institution’s chancellor.
While also carrying out various other ‘duties,’ the Speaker stays at the Rock Hotel, which has famously hosted the likes of King Charles, Winston Churchill, John Lennon, Sean Connery and Prince Edward.
The five-star hotel boasts Gibraltar’s largest outdoor swimming pool and the ‘exclusive fine dining’ restaurant Alfred’s.
According to the Mail, Hoyle’s recent trips there have seen £7,396.50 of taxpayer cash spent on accommodation, while £1,694.23 was splashed on food. The rest of the £15,000 went on airfares.
According to the Daily Mail, Hoyle travels with two or three aides, and they prefer to fly via British Airways and its partner airlines.
Despite Gibraltar being just over two hours away by plane, the Speaker refuses to travel in economy or premium economy class.
Instead, he chooses business-class flights to the territory, which have cost £6,616.54 over the past few years.
Sir Hoyle said he would ‘correct’ the record this week after it emerged his wife attended one of the jaunts to Gib in December 2021, in which six people, including Sir Hoyle, travelled to the Rock.
The University of Gibraltar confirmed that it had picked up the tab for Sir Hoyle, his wife and one aide, meaning the taxpayer paid for the three other members of staff.
But his Gibraltar expenses are nothing in comparison to other overseas ventures, which have cost the public a whopping £250,000, including £180,000 on airfares.
Since October 2022, the Speaker has jetted off on 19 ‘non-regular’ trips, to places such as the Cayman Islands, Verona, South Africa, Australia, and Singapore.
A previous flight by Hoyle to Verona, in the northeast of Italy, reportedly cost £1,161, compared to the budget airline price of £40.
In 2024, the MP chose to visit the glamorous British Overseas territory of the Cayman Islands, in the Caribbean, racking up a £15,805 bill.
Hoyle’s trip to Singapore in 2022 saw him housed in the five-star Shangri-La, in a room priced at £597 per night.
There are further examples of his luxury journeys paid for by the taxpayer, but ‘Long-haul Lindsay’ has tried to justify the habit.
A spokesperson for Horley claims that he is an important ambassador for Britain and is key for foreign relations.
Speaking on TalkTV, Tim Montgomerie, a political activist and columnist, questioned why the Speaker always visits places with ‘around-the-clock sunshine’.
“This is unacceptable… the speaker isn’t accountable to anyone, apart from MPs, and if MPs don’t start looking at how he conducts himself, then who will? The trouble is that they are intimidated by him,” said Montgomerie.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Recent revelations about the Speaker’s expenses have raised serious questions about him and his office’s treatment of taxpayer cash.
“While his spokespeople insist that these costs come as part of his diplomatic work, the extravagance of the expenditure means their credibility is being stretched to breaking point. It’s time now for an investigation.”
