One of the MPs at the centre of the expenses row said, during a visit to Bristol, he and his colleagues had to regain the respect of the public.

Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, who last week paid back £2,600 claimed for renovations to his Tudor cottage, said MPs could recover from the criticism that continues to be directed at them by an angry electorate but "only if we do the right thing".

Mr Lansley, aged 52, was among Conservative MPs forced to give a public explanation by leader David Cameron. He spent thousands of pounds renovating a thatched Tudor country cottage and spent more than £500 having the driveway re-shingled.

He is then alleged to have "flipped" his expenses to a flat in London and claimed for new furnishings, selling the cottage, although he has since refunded £2,600.

However, Mr Lansley said during his visit to Cossham Hospital in Kingswood that his claims were "entirely valid and accepted" and denied deliberately flipping properties, saying he had moved for family reasons involving his daughter's schooling.

The South Cambridgeshire Tory MP said it was recognised the public felt tax payers' money was being used over-generously and that the whole expenses system had been discredited.

Asked if MPs could recover public confidence, he said only if they did the right thing.

He said: "We will have to earn it and it won't be done in weeks or months."

He was joined at Cossham by Chris Skidmore, the prospective Tory candidate for Kingswood.