EXPENSE CLAIMS by British MPs have fallen sharply following the 2009 expenses scandal which claimed the reputations of many, according to new figures produced by an independent examiner.
However, some wealthy British MPs now prefer to fund themselves rather than face public criticism for submitting claims, according to one Conservative MP.
In all, £3.1 million was paid out for travel, offices and other charges to MPs elected in May for 22,000 claims, though 1,500 more were rejected. MPs have continued to complain about the rules operated by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority as they insist it is leaving many at a serious loss.
Millionaire Conservative MP Adam Afriyie, who does not claim any expenses, insisted the new rules will increasingly mean that only “the rich and the childless” will be able to run for election, since the new system “ensnares and entraps” those who cannot afford to fund their own political careers. Former prime minister Gordon Brown claimed £2,500 for travel for himself and staff to his Scottish Kirkaldy and Cowdenbeath constituency – including two claims for £1 each, while his successor, Ed Miliband, sought just over £2,000 for rent and office equipment. Shadow chancellor Alan Johnson put in four claims for rent for £580 each, along with council tax and water bills of £107 and £12 per month.
The highest claiming MP was Conservative Keith Simpson, who received £20,752, mostly for travelling costs to and from his Norfolk constituency, while London Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn sought just £8.70 for the 3½ months covered by the authority’s accounts.
Some MPs, including deputy prime minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, made no claims.
During a debate in the Commons yesterday, attended by over 50 MPs, speaker after speaker condemned the authority for being too expensive, time consuming and bureaucratic, with Mr Afriyie saying: “We’ve handed over control of MPs to an unelected, unaccountable body. Ipsa is both judge and jury. Ipsa is accountable to nobody and yet it can control the way MPs work and the way they conduct their duties.
“We would never tolerate this type of set up in any other walk of life. We must ask ourselves is it right that the current system continues to frustrate the work of elected representatives. I’m sure this will be reported as MPs whinging. That’s not what this is about. What this debate is about is saving the taxpayer money”.
Meanwhile, official figures published yesterday by the Electoral Commission showed the Labour Party had to fight its general election campaign with just £8 million – a drop of £10 million on what it spent in 2005 and half the amount spent by the Conservatives, but even they did not come close to reaching the £19.5 million ceiling set by the commission.
The figures show how campaigning is changing in Britain, with a significant fall in the sums spent on billboards – down from £15 million in 2005 to £9 million this year – and party rallies, which cost all of the parties that contested the election just £1.7 million in May, compared with £4.1 million five years before. Direct mail costs, however, rose by a third, from £9 million to £12 million.
