Mileage and daily meal allowance for MPs, and whether there is a daily cap on expenses

Request

I would like to know, under the Freedom of Information Act, the following information for comparative purposes if you please:

  • The mileage allowance for MPs

  • The daily meal allowance

  • Whether there is a cap on daily expenses and if so how much


Response

IPSA holds the information that you request.

The rules regarding MPs’ business costs and expenses are contained within the MPs’ Scheme of Business Costs and Expenses (‘the Scheme’). You can view a copy of the Scheme (including all historical editions) on our website, at the following link: http://www.parliamentarystandards.org.uk.

Under the Scheme, there are various budgets, against which an MP can claim expenditure, necessarily incurred in the exercise of their parliamentary functions (such as the Staffing Expenditure budget, or the Office Costs Expenditure budget).

Chapter Nine of the Scheme relates to Travel expenditure. There is not a ‘mileage allowance’. MPs may use their private vehicles for travel and claim the cost of the mileage when undertaking parliamentary work and where there is a specific need or it is cost-effective to do so.

Under the latest edition of the Scheme, which came into effect on 1 April 2015, there is no daily meal allowance. MPs are no longer permitted to claim the cost of meals incurred on a daily basis at Parliament. Under previous editions of the Scheme, MPs could claim reimbursement of the costs of an evening meal (excluding alcoholic drinks), when they were required to be at the House of Commons because the House was sitting beyond 7.30pm. This was limited to £15 for each night. This provision has now been removed.

There is not a daily cap on business costs and expenses. Rather, as noted above, budgets (such as staffing, accommodation or office costs) each have their own annual budget limits. These limits can be found at Annex A of the Scheme (which can be viewed on our website, a link to which is provided above).

Ref:
F1415-165
Disclosure:
1 April 2015
Categories:
IPSA - POLICY
Exemptions Applied:
None