PRESSURE is building on  East Devon’s Conservative  MP to reveal what items he  has bought with taxpayers’  money and how much he  pays his wife.

Hugo Swire is now the only  MP in the Echo’s circulation  area not to have details of his  expenses scrutinised.

But Tory leader David  Cameron last week told his  shadow cabinet to start publishing their expense claims  online.

And the party may publish  details of all expenses  claimed by its MPs before  they become publicly available in July after a long-running Freedom of Information  Act battle.

 Broad details of the amount  claimed by Mr Swire are  known.

Last year he billed the taxpayer £22,802 for the cost of  renting and furnishing his  family home in Sidbury, near  Sidmouth, £281 below the  maximum amount allowed.  In 2002-03 he was the joint  highest claimant of this  category of expense — Additional Costs Allowance (ACA) —  among all 657 MPs.

Claims made under ACA  have proved to be the most  controversial since details of  leaked claims were published  by the Daily Telegraph.

The system is designed to  reimburse politicians for  costs involved in working  away from home in Westminster but many have used it to  subsidise aspects of their  lifestyles.

Lib Dem MP for Teignbridge, Richard  Younger-Ross, used ACA to  pay for  a hi-fi worth £1,123  and Tiverton and Honiton  MP Angela Browning  claimed nearly £7,300 in ACA  for soft furnishings and decoration.

Mr Swire, 49, also claimed  £88,271 for staffing allowance  last year. He employs his wife  Sasha as a senior researcher  and assistant and it is  thought he employs two more  assistants.  Mr Swire’s claims  for incidental expenses were  among the highest in the  House of Commons last year,  at £23,572.

Last year Mr Swire  voted to  retain the right of MPs to use  taxpayers’ money to claim for  a raft of household goods  from the ‘John Lewis list’ and  home improvements.

 The latest South West  politician to face criticism for  her expenses is Dr Caroline  Jackson, one of the region’s  MEPs.

It emerged yesterday that  she paid her husband Robert  £22,500  to help her write a  15-page document on waste  disposal.

The payment was blasted  by the Taxpayers’ Alliance as  “vastly inflated” and described Dr Jackson, 62, as “a  complete disgrace”.

Dr Jackson, who is not  standing for re-election at  next month’s Euro elections,  said her husband had relevant experience and was paid  an “appropriate professional  fee”.

Last year, Tory MEP Giles  Chichester, who is standing  again, admitted paying  £445,000 to a family firm in  breach of rules.

Mr Swire, on holiday in  Cornwall this week, was not  available for comment.

Previously he has told the  Echo the expenses system is  in need of wide-ranging reform.

 He also pledged to pay back  any claims judged inappropriate by an internal party  panel.