A former Royal Air Force officer who once stood as a Tory candidate against Tony Blair has been put in charge of the office investigating breaches of MPs' expenses rules, it has been announced.
Alan Lockwood has been appointed as interim compliance officer by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) with the responsibility to launch inquiries into complaints against MPs or the watchdog itself over expense abuses.
The former RAF group captain, who was a military spokesman during the Iraq War, was heavily defeated in the Sedgefield seat by Mr Blair at the 2005 General Election.
A statement on Ipsa's website said: "Alan comes from a distinguished military career with the Royal Air Force during which he commanded operations in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.
"Since his retirement from the military, Alan has been active in politics, defence and the media, and has served as a trustee board member with the Citizens Advice Bureau.
"During the next six months Alan will be in charge of setting up the compliance office and ensuring that the policies and procedures are developed and are in place.
"The compliance office is independent of Ipsa and is responsible for investigating complaints regarding breaches of the expenses rules by an MP or Ipsa."
Ipsa said it was legally obliged to carry out a consultation on aspects of the compliance office's procedures.
