Further details of trips claimed by Eric Joyce MP

IPSA does not hold the information that you request.

Members of Parliament are permitted, under the MPs’ Scheme of Business Costs and Expenses (‘the Scheme’), to claim for expenses legitimately incurred whilst carrying out their parliamentary duties and are required to certify that this is the case before submitting claims.  This may include travel necessary for parliamentary business, such as between the constituency and Westminster, or costs associated with the running of an office and necessary for a Member’s parliamentary duties.

As noted above, Members are required to certify that claims are made in line with the rules set out in the Scheme, and must provide documentation in support of claims.  When making a claim for mileage the MP can download a spreadsheet from the IPSA website and enter the total number of miles driven each day for one month. While MPs must certify that journeys made relate to their parliamentary duties, IPSA does not record the specific purpose for journeys.

Further, Office Costs Expenditure (OCE) is provided to meet the costs of renting, equipping and running an MP’s office or offices and surgeries.  While Members must, as already noted above, both certify that claims made under OCE are in line with the Scheme and provide documentation in support of claims, IPSA does not request or record the reason why a Member has chosen a specific piece of equipment, nor the name of individuals who use them.

You may be aware that IPSA publishes details of all claims for business costs and expenses on our website every two months, three months in arrears.  The most recent publication took place on 9 January 2014, which relates to claims made between August and September 2013.  Using the search function, you can download details we hold of all claims made for travel purposes, which may provide you with some further information.