#mpexpenses

[brainfood6]

Edit,edit,edit.......small episode coming tomorrow on my channel. Just some recent opinions. #cabinetelections #labourleadershipelection #mpexpenses #toriesout

[rateyourmp]

IPSA Announces changes to MP Business Costs & Expenses Scheme for 2015-16

On the day the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority publishes its scheme for the new financial year RateYourMP.com takes a look at whats been paid out over the past 4.5 years and speculates at how much the final 2010-15 bill will come to - we are estimating the last 6months for now as these wont be published until well after the election and will include MP winding up costs and Resettlement payments (more analysis on these to come later!)

Whilst plenty of focus has been levied at MP’s accommodation, travel and miscellaneous claims from inappropriate hotel bills to poppy wreaths, we can see that those areas are both small and relatively flat over the last 5 years - From our breakdown of costs shown above is obvious that the key driver is Staff costs which - excluding 2010 which does not show a full financial year - has increased +10% year on year. 

Some of those MPs that have claimed the most on Staffing costs (available data is up to Nov 31 2014) are David Lammy,  Barry Gardiner, Chuka Umunna,  Tessa Jowell & Glenda Jackson

For context the average Staffing costs claim across all MPs is currently  £427,354 and Philip Hollobone - former MP for Kettering - has yet to claim any staffing costs at all.

To clarify Staffing Expenditure may be used to meet the following costs: 

staff salaries, employers' contributions to National Insurance and employers' contributions to pension schemes; 

payments to pooled staffing resources; 

payments for bought-in services; 

overtime payments, to the extent that these are specified in staff terms and conditions; 

payments for childcare vouchers for staff or other payments by way of salary sacrifice schemes; 

modest reward and recognition payments (but these may not be claimed in respect of any connected parties); 

one-off health and welfare costs associated with provision of staffing support, such as eyesight tests and occupational health assessments; 

costs associated with apprenticeships that meet the standards of the National Apprenticeship Service;

the incidental expenses of volunteers 

where the MP expects the Office Costs Expenditure budget to be exhausted, employment practice liability insurance and staff training costs. 

In 2015-16 IPSA has announced the Staffing Expenditure budget has been increased by 1% to £147,000 for London Area MPs and £140,000 for non-London Area MPs, to reflect the wider public sector pay policy. 

[rateyourmp]

MPs claim £180,480.23 worth of congestion charges & tolls 

According to our latest analysis of the outgoing Parliament’s expense data, this is the amount paid out to MPs & family dependants for London Congestion charge, motorway & bridge tolls on journeys to and from Westminster in the past four and a half years [MP expense data is only available up till November of last year - we wont have the full 5 year picture for you until September as MPs, even those who are not returned or standing again can claim costs & expenses up till July]. 

Granted, they have had to pay back a total of £1,413.80 of that due mainly to insufficient evidence or duplicate claims but that still leaves a hefty £179,066.43.This doesn't include congestion charges and tolls paid our to MP staff which would add another £7,600 to the bill.

Top of the payouts has been to MPs all of whom are standing for re-election on May 7th.  Margaret Beckett, MP for Derby South who has received almost £6,400 has a journey from her constituency office to Westminster of approximately 129 miles. All her claims were for the London congestion charge. She ranks 319th in terms of cost per vote.   

Next is David Wright who is ranked 89th out of 650 currently on our MPIndex who has received almost £4,500 since 2010 in Congestion zone and toll reimbursement. Though some of his claims have been grouped confusingly with Utility bills. 

Mark Tami, the  MP for Alyn & Deeside in Wales, some 200 miles from Westminister is 3rd having received almost £4,400 for congestion zone and M6 toll claims.

Its not only MPs living hundreds of miles away who have received significant payments. One MP, whose constituency in Lambeth is less that 7miles from the House of Commons has clocked up almost £1,000 worth of London congestion zone charge payments. This is in addition to receiving the London living allowance of £3,760 per year intended to contribute towards the additional expenses of living in the London Area or of commuting regularly to the London Area.

It should be noted that some MPs who have hybrid cars or have a disabled blue badge are exempt from the congestion zone charge. 

[rateyourmp]

How are  MPs in the Bristol Area doing when it comes to comparing their costs and voting attendance?

Whilst the current Parliament official ceased yesterday, we will have to wait until September to see a final set of complete 2014-15 cost figures published by IPSA the independent body that is responsible for MP pay, expenses and allowances.  Until then we will, every couple of months, see further publications of our old MPs claims. The current data takes us up to the end of November 2014.

MPs in and around Bristol may never have seen themselves this way before.The Second Deputy Speaker, Dawn Primarolo, earns a considerable Ministerial Salary (£36,360) on top of the basic MP gross annual salary of £67 office running costs in this Parliament are over £175,000 more than Jacob Rees-Mogg’s. Only four Bristol area MPs overall costs are below the Commons average for the current Parliament. As well as the aforementioned J.Rees-Mogg, John Penrose, Chris Skidmore and Jack Lopresti managed to achieve this by mainly having lower office running costs and broadly claiming less than the Commons avergae for the past 4.5year.

As well as tracking MP costs we also measure how often then vote in the House of Commons. We use this to generate a simple Cost Per Vote metric which makes it easier and broadly fair to compare not just within Bristol but for all MPs. We can see that the majority in the area are below the average across all 650 MPs. Dr Liam Fox & Prof. Steve Webb are  exceptions to that with Jack Lopresti being virtually on the average.

Click the chart above for the list of linked Bath-area constituencies