A FORMER Swindon MP is allowed to claim up to £57,000 after standing down from her seat, the Adver-tiser can reveal.

Julia Drown, who was replaced as Swindon South MP by Anne Snelgrove, will receive a lump sum payment from a so-called resettlement grant.

In addition she will be able to claim a winding up grant which could be tens of thousands more.

Every member of parliament who stands down or is defeated at an election receives these tax-free payouts.

The basic salary of a Member of Parliament is £57,485.

Ms Drown, who is 43, and with eight years service as a Labour MP is entitled to a re-settlement grant for leaving parliament of £28,742.

Additionally, she can claim a grant to pay for the expenses incurred in office costs, staff costs and travel expenses after the date of leaving Parliament.

This is based on up to a third of the expected annual cost of running an MP's office and staff costs.

Last year, Ms Drown's combined incidental expenses and staff allowance was £86,805. On that basis her maximum winding up allowance would have been estimated at £28,935.

This figure is estimated on last year's figure for a full 12-month period.

However, she yesterday told the Advertiser she does not intend to claim anything like the upper limit.

She said: "It is a generous settlement but I am always conscious about the cost to tax payers money and that is why I will use the money wisely and carefully.

"I am currently still going through files and files of correspondence. There are issues like rental agreements, postage, sorting out paper work.

"My staff all have to officially be made redundant and payments made. It is generous but it is obviously nothing like the fat cat payoffs you see in the papers."

As well as receiving these sums the ex-MPs are entitled to draw their pensions after they leave Parliament.

The pension is a contributory final salary scheme with MPs paying up to 10 per cent of their annual income in each year.

Ms Drown yesterday said she was looking forward to spending more time with her children.

She also hopes to be able to chair a research group for the National Prenatal Epidemiology Unit.