Editing Peter Viggers (section)

===Duck island scandal===
On 21 May 2009, ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' reported on Viggers' claims as part of its [[Disclosure of expenses of British Members of Parliament|investigation of MPs' expenses]], which it said showed Viggers was paid more than £30,000 for gardening expenses over three years. The paper noted in particular that Viggers had attempted to claim for a "pond feature" worth £1,645, which was identified as a "[[duck house|floating duck island]]". However, it was unclear whether he had been reimbursed as an official had written "not allowable" next to it.<ref name="Telegraph gardening">{{cite news |first=Nick |last=Allen |title=£30,000 for the garden, including the ducks bill |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=21 May 2009 |page=3}}</ref> On hearing the details of the story the ''Telegraph'' intended to run, Viggers announced late the previous night "at the direct request" of party leader [[David Cameron]] his intention to stand down at the next election.<ref name="Standing down">{{cite news |first=Nigel |last=Morris |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/expenses-scandal-claims-more-victims--but-huge-payouts-await-1688627.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090523222946/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/expenses-scandal-claims-more-victims--but-huge-payouts-await-1688627.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 May 2009 |title=More MPs resign over expenses – but could claim huge payouts |newspaper=The Independent |date=21 May 2009 |page=8}}</ref> He also stood down from his role as spokesman for the [[Speaker's Committee]] answering Parliamentary Questions for the [[Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)|Electoral Commission]]. On his website, however, he said about expenses: "Personally, I have of course always scrupulously observed the rules".<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.peterviggers.co.uk/press/0186.htm |title=Situation Report, 12 noon, Wednesday, 13 May |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527003045/http://www.peterviggers.co.uk/press/0186.htm |archive-date=27 May 2009 }}</ref>

The floating duck house, a symbol of the expenses scandal, was later sold at auction. It raised £1,700, handed over to the [[Macmillan Cancer Support|Macmillan Cancer]] charity.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ex-MP Sir Peter Viggers sells duck house for charity|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exmp-sir-peter-viggers-sells-duck-house-for-charity-2072007.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exmp-sir-peter-viggers-sells-duck-house-for-charity-2072007.html |archive-date=26 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|accessdate=6 February 2014|newspaper=The Independent|date=7 September 2010}}</ref> The claim was later referenced in the name of the 2013 farcical political satire ''[[The Duck House]]''<ref name="MP">{{cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/10308476/MPs-expenses-scandal-becomes-West-End-comedy.html | title=MPs' expenses scandal becomes West End comedy | work=The Telegraph | date=16 September 2013 | accessdate=21 September 2013| last1=Rayner | first1=Gordon }}</ref> based on the [[UK parliamentary expenses scandal]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24108600 | title=The Duck House: MPs' expenses satire heads for West End | work=BBC News | date=16 September 2013 | accessdate=21 September 2013}}</ref>