LONDON, May 29 (Reuters) - Britain's Chief Secretary to the Treasury David Laws resigned on Saturday after admitting claiming tens of thousands of pounds in parliamentary expenses for rent he passed on to his long-term partner.
Laws, a Liberal Democrat, holds the No. 2 Treasury job in a coalition government led by the Conservative Party that took office little more than two weeks.
Alongside Conservative finance minister George Osborne he is responsible for identifying cuts and slashing government spending to tackle Britain's record peacetime budget deficit.
Some of those austerity measures were laid down last week, when an initial 6.2 billion pounds ($9.05 billion) of departmental savings were announced, including cutting down on ministerial perks.
(Reporting by Stefano Ambrogi; Editing by Louise Ireland) ($1=.6852 Pound) Keywords: BRITAIN LAWS/EXPENSES (stefano.ambrogi@reuters.com; +44 20 7542 8167; Reuters Messaging: stefano.ambrogi.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Laws, a Liberal Democrat, holds the No. 2 Treasury job in a coalition government led by the Conservative Party that took office little more than two weeks.
Alongside Conservative finance minister George Osborne he is responsible for identifying cuts and slashing government spending to tackle Britain's record peacetime budget deficit.
Some of those austerity measures were laid down last week, when an initial 6.2 billion pounds ($9.05 billion) of departmental savings were announced, including cutting down on ministerial perks.
(Reporting by Stefano Ambrogi; Editing by Louise Ireland) ($1=.6852 Pound) Keywords: BRITAIN LAWS/EXPENSES (stefano.ambrogi@reuters.com; +44 20 7542 8167; Reuters Messaging: stefano.ambrogi.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.