Revealed: How much Wales’
CARDIFF North MP Anna McMorrin is the second most expensive Welsh MP so far this year – after claiming more than £28,000 in expenses.
Out of that total, which covers the six months from January to June, the MP claimed more than £17,400 for rent (accommodation and office), and more than £1,900 was for train tickets. Some £16 went on items including coffee and milk.
Ms McMorrin said: “At every opportunity I ensure that I keep costs as low as possible to save the taxpayer money. In the year 2017-2018 I underspent by £32,000 over the year, across all budgets.
“My expenses will always be slightly higher than the average MP as I am the primary carer for my two daughters. Therefore, in line with Ipsa rules, I am allocated an additional accommodation allowance per child to ensure they can stay with me when necessary in London.
“For example, this year the autumn Budget week fell during half-term, so they stayed with me in London, and came with me to work. I also often need to travel back and forth to Westminster more than once a week to be with them, whenever possible travelling super off-peak and always choosing the cheapest ticket available.
“The cost of tea, coffee and milk is for constituent meetings.”
Guto Bebb is the most expensive Welsh MP so far this year – after claiming more than £31,000 in expenses.
Between January and June, the Conservative MP for Aberconwy claimed £31,609.71, for items ranging from accommodation to stationery.
His largest expense category was for office and accommodation rent, which was responsible for more than £11,100 of the amount claimed.
Some £1,270.74 was for council tax and £1,456.39 was for stationery.
Mr Bebb served as a Defence Minister but resigned from the Government earlier this year after Theresa May made concessions to Brexiteers.
He said: “As usual every penny spent by my office can be examined by those interested. The period reflects my time at the [Ministry of Defence] when I often travelled back and forth to Westminster more than once a week.”
His expenses show claims relating to his own vehicle of £1,609.20, plus parking costs of £712 and rail tickets costing £2,616.90.
Preseli Pembrokeshire Conservative MP Stephen Crabb claimed £27,140.40, Labour Gower MP Tonia Antoniazzi claimed £27,126.30, while Arfon Plaid Cymru MP Hywel Williams claimed £27,003.70.
Eighty-three year-old Newport West Labour MP Paul Flynn, who has announced plans to stand down “as soon as possible” and last month described how he has been confined to bed, only claimed £5,278.04, the lowest amount in Wales. He has said he wants to avoid the “enormous” cost of a by-election and hopes there will be another general election.
The largest chunk of that went on new computer equipment (£1,976.70).
In 2016 Mr Flynn suggested that the present expenses system administered by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) should be replaced with an “allowance calculated on average expenses based on distance from Westminster and paid automatically”.
He argued on his blog: “Ipsa is a bureaucratic ornament... Our reputation has sunk from rock bottom to subterranean.
“Financial scandals have continued in both Houses with toe-curling regularity. The public are still convinced that MPs use the system for own ends.”
The Welsh MP with the second lowest expenses was Labour’s Susan Elan Jones, who represents Clwyd South. She had expenses of just £6,263.08.
The average cost of expenses claimed so far this year is £16,964 per MP, with approximately £11m claimed by all MPs since January.
Only 16 Welsh MPs were below average, but transport costs are often higher for MPs who have long journeys to London.
Most of the money is spent on office costs (£5.5m)., while the second highest category is accommodation (£3.6m).