Mr Trend apologised for being 'muddled and naive'

MPs voted unanimously to mete out the punishment to Michael Trend, who has already apologised to the Commons for his mistake.

The penalty was recommended by the Commons standards and privileges committee, which said that while the Windsor MP had "acted negligently rather than with dishonest intent", it had to take account of the effect such cases had on public confidence.

It was wrong to sign a certificate giving the home of his friend in London as his main residence Sir George Young

MPs on the committee were also worried such a large amount of money was claimed incorrectly and only came to light after newspaper reports, not through the normal scrutiny process.

Committee chairman Sir George Young said Sir Philip Mawer, the new Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, found that Mr Trend had "misused" the additional cost allowance.

Friend's house

But the committee agreed that he was "not dishonest" in his belief that he could choose which was his main place of residence, said Sir George.

"However, he should have recognised that by claiming additional costs allowance in relation to his Windsor home, the taxpayer was meeting some of the core running costs of what was, in reality, his main residence," said Sir George.

The consequences for Mr Trend have already been severe in bringing to an end his parliamentary career Sir George Young

The standards commissioner said he found it "difficult to understand" how Mr Trend had felt able to sign a certificate in 2000 saying his main home was a friend's house in London.

This was despite his admission he was staying there infrequently at the time, said the report.

Sir George insisted that it was the responsibility of MPs to ensure their expenses claims were accurate and valid.

Impact on public confidence

"The consequences for Mr Trend, of what he conceded in his evidence to us was 'a mistake, a serious mistake' have already been severe in bringing to an end his parliamentary career," he said.

"However, we must recognise the impact on public confidence in MPs and in Parliament of cases of improper use of allowances and of course the sum involved in this case was very substantial...

"Having weighed all these considerations, we recommend that Mr Trend be suspended from the service of the House for two weeks."

In a short personal statement earlier this month, Mr Trend said he apologised "unreservedly" for his mistake and wanted to make his "position clear" before the Commons recess.

Then, Mr Trend told the Commons speaker: "I accept unreservedly the committee's report which finds me muddled and naive in my negligent understanding of the additional costs allowance.

"I apologise again, unreservedly, to you, to the House and my constituents. I am sir, so very sorry."

'Misunderstanding'

The committee said the MP had incorrectly claimed an annual allowance of �20,000 that was meant to fund London accommodation for MPs from faraway constituencies.

Instead, he had wrongly been claiming this allowance despite staying at his Windsor home most nights.

Mr Trend told the Commons authorities his mistake was caused by a "misunderstanding, honestly and genuinely held" about what expenses he could claim.

He returned the overpayment on 23 December and has since announced his decision to stand down at the next General Election.

Sir George called for tighter controls on MPs' allowances to be introduced as quickly as possible.

Commons leader Robin Cook said there were preparations being made to improve the scrutiny of MPs' claims.

'Difficult to understand'

Sir Philip began his inquiry into the expenses claim after he received a letter from elderly piano teacher Roy Birmingham, a Windsor constituent, complaining about it.

Sir Philip said that it was up to the police and the prosecuting authorities to decide whether Mr Trend should be charged with obtaining by deception.

But in claiming such allowances, MPs were subject to criminal law like anyone else.

Mr Trend, a journalist, was elected to the House of Commons in 1992 as MP for Windsor and Maidenhead, before its boundaries changed to Windsor in 1997.

He was returned in the 2001 election with a majority of 21.1% over the Liberal Democrats - the Conservatives' 39th strongest result.