Details of MPs’ office and accommodation costs since 2017

Request

I wish to make an FOI requesting the total cost of MP's rent and mortgage claims for offices and accommodation since the start of this parliament in 2017 to date.


Response

IPSA holds the information that you request.

Under the Scheme of MPs’ Business Costs and Expenses (‘the Scheme’), MPs can claim for costs incurred as a result of working from two permanent locations, such as rent for a property in London or the constituency.

Further, an office costs budget is provided to meet the costs of running, equipping and maintaining an office (or offices). This includes the renting of one or more premises to be used as a constituency office, each of which must be registered with IPSA before a rental claim is made. Most claims for reimbursement made under the Scheme should be accompanied by supporting evidence.

Please note that mortgage payments are not claimable. Instead, MPs who live in homes they own, may claim for associated costs which relate to living in the property, such as utilities and council tax.

The information that you have requested is published on our website.

From the drop-down menu in the box in located in the top right-hand corner, select the financial year you are interested in.

Then select Total spend from the second drop down menu.

Once you have downloaded the spreadsheet, the information you request is available in columns E and X.

The FOIA states that information that is accessible by other means is not subject to release. Therefore, as the information you have requested is already available on our website, it is exempt from disclosure under section 21 of the FOIA (information accessible to applicant by other means).

This concludes our response to your request.

Ref:
CAS-145394
Disclosure:
15 July 2019
Categories:
MPs' OFFICE COSTSMPs' ACCOMMODATION
Exemptions Applied: