Sir Nick Clegg claims £113,000 expenses despite Facebook salary

Sir Nick Clegg claimed nearly £113,000 in expenses for public duties despite drawing a substantial salary from Facebook.

The former deputy prime minister received just shy of the full amount in 2018/19, during which he spent five months as a vice president at the social media giant.

The ex-Lib Dem leader, who helped oversee austerity in the coalition government, reportedly receives a seven-figure salary from Facebook.

The Public Duty Cost Allowance was introduced to assist former prime ministers who are still active in public life, but unusually, Sir Nick can receive it as an ex-deputy premier.

Cabinet Office figures show he claimed £112,882 over the year, while David Cameron took £110,413, Tony Blair £115,000, Gordon Brown £114,057, and Sir John Major £114,935.

The department said it was told by Sir Nick around the time he took the Facebook job in October that it would be the final year in which he would draw from the fund.

Sir Nick, who lost his Sheffield Hallam seat in the 2017 general election, was entitled to the full amount of £115,000.

As the social network’s vice president of global affairs on Thursday, he said a £4 billion fine for the firm in the US would spark a change “deep into the bowels of the company”.

The 52-year-old was recruited by Mark Zuckerberg’s firm as he sought to repair the company’s reputation over its role in spreading misinformation during elections.