Foreign Secretary Jack Straw was the most expensive East Lancashire MP according to a new academic survey.

The London School of Economics made its calculations by dividing MPs' expenses by the number of times they voted in the House of Commons.

Blackburn MP Mr Straw came third out of the list of 634 MPs allowed to vote the survey covered the period from the June 2001 to the end of 2004 at a cost of £2,043.39 per vote.

Mr Straw said: "I take my responsibilities to my constituents and to the House of Commons very seriously but as Foreign Secretary I often have to be out of the country and therefore have to miss votes. I vote whenever I can."

The cheapest East Lancashire MP was Hyndburn's Greg Pope who came 392nd at £486.97.

He said: "This is a crude and ridiculous survey. There is much more to being an MP or minister than voting."

Ribble Valley Tory MP Nigel Evans, 99th on the list at £660, said: "Voting is only part of being an MP.

"There are many other things we have to do in the consituency and at Westminster or even overseas that we have to do which may prevent us from voting."

Rossendale and Darwen MP Janet Anderson came 131st at £619.28 per vote, ex-Burnley MP Peter Pike 313th at £518.75 per vote and Pendle's Gordon Prentice 320th at £516.89 per vote.