Total cost of all MPs' business costs and expenses in 2014-15

Request

Can you please advise:

the total budget for MPs expenses and allowances, together with total expenditure the total budget for the expenses and allowances of members of the House of Lords together with total expenditure

in respect of the 2014/15 tax year.


Response

As you will be aware, IPSA is responsible for paying the salaries of all MPs and their staff, and administering, regulating and paying claims for business costs and expenses.

Under the MPs’ Scheme of Business Costs and Expenses (‘the Scheme’), there are a number of budgets against which MPs’ can claim costs incurred in the exercise of their parliamentary functions. You can view a copy of the Scheme on our website via this link. At Annex A of the Scheme, you can find a summary of the annual budgets for each budget heading.

Each year we submit a Supply Estimate to Parliament, which constitutes our budget for the forthcoming financial year. Details of the Estimate submitted at the beginning of the financial year and our outturn at the end of the financial year are published in our annual report and accounts. Each year’s annual report is published on our website.

We are currently preparing our annual report and accounts for the 2014-15 financial year, which will be published on our website in the autumn. However, you can view all previous annual reports using the link provided above.

The Estimate is comprised of different subheads which relate to different aspects of our operations. Subhead A relates to MPs’ business costs and expenses, and includes the costs of MPs’ salaries, MPs’ staff salaries and pensions and MPs’ expenses. For ease, you can find the information that you have requested relating to the 2013-14 financial year at page 19 of the 2013-14 annual report and accounts.

As the 2014-15 annual report and accounts is due to be published in the autumn, it is exempt from release under section 22(1) of the FOIA states (information intended for future publication). We have considered whether the public interest in releasing the information outweighs the application of the exemption. It is our opinion that the public interest is best served by sticking to our planned publication schedule, as in this way a clear and complete set of information is published, avoiding any potential confusion. It is for this reason that the application of the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure at this stage.

IPSA does not administer costs relating to the House of Lords and does not therefore hold information relating to the Lords. To obtain this information, you may wish to contact the House of Lords, using the following contact details: http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/offices/lords/freedom-of-information-in-the-house-of-lords/lords-foi-how-to-obtain-information/.

Ref:
CAS-26019
Disclosure:
20 August 2015
Categories:
IPSA - FINANCIAL
Exemptions Applied:
Section 21