MPs drank TWICE as much in Parliament’s members-only bar since Harvey Weinstein’s sex scandal broke
MPs DRANK twice as much as much in Parliament's Members-only bar since the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke, new figures have revealed.
They sought to escape prying eyes by switching their drinking from the estate's popular bars to the Smoking Room - the only remaining bar exclusive for MPs.
Sales receipts - seen by The Sun - show an average of £3,500 per month was spent on alcohol each month as Westminster's drinking culture came under the spotlight in the wake of the Weinstein controversy.
This compares to a previous average of just £1,800 per month.
MPs said an increasing number of colleagues were switching to the Smoking Room amid a rising fear of being caught misbehaving under the influence of alcohol.
They spent a total of £23,610 last year on booze in the Smoking Room.
Nearly half of the total was spent on wine - with Sauvignon Blanc the most popular drink.
But MPs also drank 650 pints and spent more than £3,000 on spirits. Sipsmith gin was the top-purchased spirit, followed by Famous Grouse Scotch Whiskey.
The rise in alcohol consumption comes despite a group of MPs using the turn of the New Year to tell Brits to crack down on their booze consumption.
A Parliament spokesman said: “The House of Commons always promotes responsible alcohol use.
“A wide range of non-alcoholic drinks and lower strength beers are available to all customers, and all bar staff receive appropriate training.”
The switch to the Smoking Room comes after a series of warnings about Westminster’s drinking culture in the wake of the Weinstein scandal.
A former bar manager of the notorious Sports & Social Bar - where MPs mix with their researchers and other Commons staff - told The Sun of how she was repeatedly pestered for sex by up to 30 MPs during her four years working there.
Alice Bailey, 25, described how an SNP MP begged her for sex two hours into her first shift, a veteran Labour member sank 12 pints then followed her home and groped her and how boozy MPs regularly drank five bottles of Jagermeister a night.