Labour MP for Wentworth

October 2009

Access to information on MPs’ allowances

If constituents want to know how much it costs for me to do my job as their MP, I believe this information should be available to them.

I’m not required to publish information about the allowances that I use to support my work as MP for Wentworth. But we are public servants and this is public money. I think people should be able to see the details for themselves. 

My constituency office

My constituency office in Wath-upon-Dearne is staffed and open to the public five days a week throughout the year, with a shutdown between Christmas and New Year. 

My staff

All staff are employed on standard Parliamentary contracts and paid at appropriate Parliamentary rates. I do not employ any members of my family.

My travel

My rail travel is exclusively between South Yorkshire and London, whilst my car mileage claims are for work within in the constituency, travel to and from Doncaster station and very occasionally a constituency-Westminster journey. 

My family home

I live in Rotherham with my family, and my wife and I jointly own our home here. We have a small flat in London, and the additional costs allowance contributes towards the costs of maintaining it. 

My approach is straightforward: my home and family are in Rotherham, so this is my main home; we have a small flat in central London because being an MP requires us to work in Westminster for part of the time. If I was not an MP, I would not need and would not have this flat. My claims made for the second home allowance are for actual costs incurred in running the flat and being away from home in London, and I keep a record of all receipts, invoices and bank statements for such costs. Beyond the running costs which I believe are reasonable and right to claim, we bore further costs ourselves in purchasing and maintaining our flat, just as we do now that we rent instead.

My commitment to public disclosure

Each year the House of Commons authorities confirm my claims have been made within the rules and publish my spending totals for each allowance, as they do for all MPs. 

However, I believe it is right to provide a more detailed and more regular breakdown of the allowances I use. 

Since April 2008 I have been publishing on my website a detailed breakdown of payments, as they have been claimed and made, to cover the costs incurred for:

• Staff salaries

• Travel between Rotherham and London

• Running my constituency office

• Maintaining a small flat in London as my second home

• Communications with constituents.

It is the Additional Costs Allowance – or second home allowance – which has caused the most controversy. That’s why, in advance of the House of Commons publishing copies of MPs’ claims from 2004-5 to 2007-8 in May 2009, I also published a detailed breakdown of my claims and payments for the ACA for these years. 

Last year I published on my website a detailed quarterly breakdown of the payments made by the House of Commons on all allowances.

This year I am doing so month-by-month. 

Background: Allowances MPs can claim

All MPs can make use of five separate allowances to help them do their job. These are:

1 Office costs (incidental expenses provision allowance)

This is for running an office, organising advice surgeries and other costs in doing the job of MP. It cannot be used to meet any personal costs or the costs of party political activities. All expenditure must have an invoice or receipt, and is checked by the Parliamentary finance department before being paid. Total: up to £22 393 for the year.

2 Staff costs (staffing allowance)

This allows MPs to employ staff to help them do their job. Staff are paid directly by the Parliamentary finance department. All staff must be employed on approved job descriptions and standard contracts determined by the Commons authorities. Total: up to £103 812 for the year.

3 Communications costs (communications allowance)

This supports MPs in communicating with constituents, through things like regular reports, newsletters, websites and advice surgery notices. Materials must be approved by the Parliamentary finance department in advance, and must have an invoice or receipt before being paid. It cannot be spent on party political, fundraising or election campaigning. Total: up to £10 400 for the year.

4 Travel 

MPs’ travel costs are covered for: travel between constituency and Westminster (unlimited); constituency mileage on Parliamentary business (paid at 40p a mile for first 10 000 miles, then 25p a mile); spouses’ or children’s travel between constituency and Westminster (up to 15 return journeys a year); staff’s travel between constituency and Westminster (up to 12 return journeys a year). All claims are verified by the Parliamentary finance department before being paid. Extended travel within the UK and limited European travel may be eligible but authorisation is required in advance. 

5 Second homes (additional costs allowance)

MPs with constituencies beyond inner London can use a special allowance to help with some of the costs of staying overnight away from their main home. This can cover rent or mortgage interest and certain other costs in running a second home. Total: up to £24 222 for the year.

From 20 May 2009, the rules on what MPs can claim for their second home were tightened and a cap of £1250 per month put on any mortgage interest or rent costs. 

The second home allowance can now only be used to claim: rent, mortgage interest, overnight subsistence (£25/night maximum), council tax, service charges, utility bills (gas, water, oil, telephone calls and line rental), insurance (buildings and contents).

A bar on MPs “flipping” the designation of their second home has also been introduced.

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2009/10