He had said the journeys were for shopping trips for official functions and that Mrs Martin had been accompanied by an official at all times, but he was later told by the Mail on Sunday that the official was in fact a housekeeper working for the speaker.

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Examples of personal journeys for which taxis were claimed included trips to The Ivy and The Wolsey restaurants.

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He often journeys to remote spots to check out new itineraries, such as trips to see Bonobo monkeys in Congo and penguins in Antarctica.

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