Lord guilty of fiddling expenses

A former Tory peer has been found guilty of falsely claiming expenses.

Lord Taylor of Warwick told the House of Lords members' expenses office that his main residence was in Oxford, when he lived in west London.

A jury at Southwark Crown Court decided by a majority of 11 to one that he had falsely claimed for travel and overnight subsistence.

The 58-year-old stood impassively in the dock as the guilty verdict on all six counts was delivered.

John Taylor became the first black Conservative peer when he took his seat in the house of Lords in 1996, following a failed attempt to get elected as MP for Cheltenham in 1992.

Throughout the trial, Lord Taylor maintained he was following the advice given to him by fellow peers, that nominating a main residence outside of the capital was a way to earn money "in lieu of salary".

The jury of seven men and five women agreed with the case against Lord Taylor, that he misled the Members' Expenses Section in the House of Lords to swindle more than £11,000.

Lord Taylor is set to remain a member of the Upper House despite his conviction and sentencing will be delivered at a later date.