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Phil Willis MP, the father of Rachel Willis, who played the character of Connie for five years, until she was axed by AOL in 2003, is the latest politician to become embroiled in the expenses debacle.

The Liberal Democrat MP, who represents Harrogate and Knaresborough, claimed thousands of pounds of expenses for the London flat his daughter lives in, which he has designated as his second home.

Mr Willis claimed more than £2,500 in stamp duty and fees and £3,000 on improvements to the property, which reports claim is occupied solely by his daughter, and for which the deeds are held jointly by the two of them.

His daughter became known to the nation as the character of Connie, who was conceived by AOL in the late 1990s in an attempt to lend a face and personality to the concept of the internet.

The brand character was the brainchild of AOL's then-ad agency MWO. However, after half a decade of the character gracing the nation's TV screens, management at AOL felt it was time to move on and she was ditched.

According to information unveiled by The Daily Telegraph, Mr Willis, whose main home is near his constituency, originally designated a London basement flat he bought ten years ago as his second home.

Since 2004-05, Mr Willis has claimed £12,653 for mortgage and interest payments, £1,267 for a new electrical system, £1,036 for drain clearing and £2,150 for decoration.

In 2007, he bought a neighbouring basement flat and designated it as his second home, claiming £2,713.68 in stamp duty and legal costs. His daughter then moved from the first flat into the second.

Mr Willis told the Telegraph that his daughter had never been a permanent resident in the flat. He said both flats were registered jointly with his wife and daughter because he had suffered a stroke and was concerned about his health.

Willis, in the paper, said: "At no time have I knowingly made claims that attempted to abuse the Additional Costs Allowance.

"I have publicly supported Nick Clegg's campaign that any capital gain made as a direct result of taxpayers' money should be returned to the fees office on sale of the property, which in my case means for both flats one and two."