A Dyson floor lamp, a £4,000 fountain pen, and boxsets of Scandi noir TV dramas. These are a handful of the items former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell purchased with the £400k he embezzled from the party over the course of a decade. The full list is even longer. Murrell has been remanded in custody and likely faces lengthy prison time. Ever since the eruption of the 2009 MPs’ expenses scandal, there has been a dark cloud of mistrust over politicians. Yet some politicians still play fast and loose with public trust, morality and transparency. In today’s episode of In The Room, former deputy cabinet secretary Helen MacNamara and former No 10 special adviser Cleo Watson discuss the shady world of money in politics. We’ll also debate whether MPs ought to have a pay rise – and you might be surprised about the outcome. New episodes of In The Room drop every week. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.