New expenses rules raise scepticism

MPs are able to claim up to 9,125 a year without producing any receipts under amended expense rules, the Daily Telegraph reports.

MPs have ignored public anger over the expenses system by quietly introducing the new rules system, the Daily Telegraph comments.

According to the BBC, MPs were previously criticised by making claims for food up to £400 per month and without receipts, even when Parliament was in recess.

Under the amended rules, MPs will still be able to make some claims for food without producing receipts.

The amendments allow MPs to claim £25 for each night while away from their constituency home. Alternatively, they are eligible to claim up to 9,125 a year without producing any receipts, as the Daily Telegraph states.

From the BBC report, it indicates under the new rules, if MPs were to claim for every day Parliament sat during the 128-days session this year, they could get a maximum of £3,200.

Previously under the old system, MPs could claim up to £4,800 a year, regardless of how many days Parliament was sitting.

As the Daily Telegraph’s Holly Watt and Robert Winnett wrote the updated Green Book governing MPs’ expenses, has been published discreetly on Parliament’s website.

It has been agreed only by a small commit of MPs chaired by John Bercow, the new Speaker, and including Harriet Harman, the Leader of House of Commons and Alan Duncan, the Tory Frontbencher.

They went on to write that the new system has been approved without any public announcement or debate in Parliament as MPs on their leave for the summer holidays, and this fact is certain to anger voters further.

Another issue highlighted by the Daily Telegraph, it says in the wake of the expenses scandal, Gordon Brown and David Cameron both pledged to clean up the system of parliamentary expenses.

Mr Bercow had campaigned to replace Michael Martin by promising reform and Miss Harman and Mr Duncan had both said that expense claims which were not backed up by receipts would be unacceptable.

Miss Harman said in the spring: “There would need to be receipts for all claims. I really do think that that is something sensible which we could decide for ourselves now.”

Mr Duncan previously also said: “The second home allowance was often just paid once a month without receipts, which is an unacceptable system in the modern age.”

Nevertheless, under the new rules, it states “no receipts are necessary” for the subsistence payments and it is “for members to decide” how the money is spent.

In this case, the Daily Telegraph assume that MPs will simply have to state how many nights they have spent away from their main home “on parliamentary business” to receive the flat-rate sum, and there is no way for the information to be independently verified.

When confirming the issue with Harriet Harman and Alan Duncan, they declined to comment, according to the Daily Telegraph.

On the other hand, the BBC says Senior Labour backbencher Sir Stuart Bell denied the system could be abused, saying MPs would be expected to keep a record of nights spent away from home.

As the Daily Telegraph continued the subsistence payments are likely to raise concerns that MPs are seeking to limit public exposure of how they spent their allowances.

Under Freedom of Information Law, MPs have to publish receipts accompanying expense claims.

However under the new system, how they spend the money will not be subject to public scrutiny, said the Daily Telegraphy.