MPs’ business costs

Chris Evans

IPSA paid £2,777,723 against 1,520 published rows for Chris Evans between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Islwyn CC, then Caerphilly CC. These are the costs of running an office and employing staff under IPSA’s rules. They are not salary, and the largest part of them is wages IPSA pays to the member’s employees rather than money the member receives.

By category, 2013-14

128 claims, £179,681 paid. The headings are IPSA’s own categories grouped; the categories inside each are named on the register page.

Category	What it covers	Claims	Paid	Share
Staffing	The salaries and employment costs of the people an MP employs to run their office and casework. IPSA pays these directly; they are not money an MP receives.	1	£134,434	74.8%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	96	£18,818	10.5%
Accommodation	The cost of somewhere to stay for an MP whose constituency is far enough from Westminster that IPSA's rules allow it. An MP representing a London seat is not eligible on the same terms.	22	£20,596	11.5%
Travel	Journeys between the constituency and Westminster and within the constituency. Until 2018-19 IPSA published one travel category; from 2019-20 it publishes travel by the MP, by staff and by a dependant separately.	1	£5,817	3.2%
Miscellaneous	Claims IPSA records under none of the headings above. Called “Miscellaneous Expenses” until 2018-19.	8	£16	0.0%

Every year in the register

Chris Evans’s own years, not the register’s: the first is 2010-11 and the last is 2025-26. Figures are not adjusted for inflation, so a rise between two distant years is partly a rise in prices. Select a year to read it on its own.

Year	Claims	Staffing	Office costs	Accommodation	Travel	Miscellaneous	Total
2010-11	63	£75,634	£16,524	£12,105	£5,797	—	£110,060
2011-12	100	£106,252	£20,104	£18,681	£7,251	—	£152,288
2012-13	93	£124,211	£20,460	£19,904	£6,739	—	£171,314
2013-14	128	£134,434	£18,818	£20,596	£5,817	£16	£179,681
2014-15	96	£129,997	£12,328	£20,482	£5,790	—	£168,597
2015-16	94	£127,426	£16,948	£21,350	£5,608	—	£171,332
2016-17	95	£116,252	£11,184	£19,836	£6,521	—	£153,794
2017-18	87	£128,824	£12,030	£20,472	£4,501	—	£165,827
2018-19	88	£135,004	£10,168	£21,964	£7,404	—	£174,540
2019-20	105	£148,602	£10,536	£20,156	£6,200	—	£185,494
2020-21	69	£153,874	£9,863	£115	£7,131	—	£170,983
2021-22	100	£168,960	£15,266	£3,965	£9,211	—	£197,401
2022-23	143	£196,373	£17,782	£6,458	£10,317	—	£230,929
2023-24	145	£203,440	£23,222	£16,640	£7,052	£95	£250,449
2024-25	88	£244,432	£16,879	£23,900	£4,692	£111	£290,014
2025-26	26	—	£5,020	—	—	—	£5,020

A year in which Chris Evans joined or left the House part-way through is a part year, and is not comparable with a full one.

What each category is made of, 2013-14

The cost types IPSA records inside each heading, largest first by what it paid.

Staffing

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Payroll	1	£134,434

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	12	£5,348
Business Rates	2	£3,786
Other	22	£3,723
IT/Other Equipment Hire	3	£1,275
Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	8	£1,062
Stationery Purchase	34	£677

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Accommodation Rent	12	£19,240
Council Tax	2	£957
Water	1	£270
Electricity	5	£209
Service Charges	1	£180
Budget Repayment (Accomm.)	1	£-259

Travel

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Aggregated Travel Costs	1	£5,817

Miscellaneous

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Expense Outside Scheme	8	£16

Largest claims, 2013-14

The 15 rows IPSA paid most against, with IPSA’s own description of each. Read the description before the amount: IPSA publishes most of a member’s staffing as one row for the whole year — “Total Staffing budget payroll costs for the ⟨year⟩ year” — so the largest row here is usually a year of wages for the member’s employees and not something bought.

Date	Category	Cost type	Description	Claimed	Paid
31 March 2014	Staffing	Payroll	Total payroll costs for the 2013-14 year	£134,434	£134,434
31 March 2014	Travel	Aggregated Travel Costs	Aggregated figure for travel during 2013-14	£5,817	£5,817
27 March 2014	Office Costs	Business Rates	service charges 2013/2014	£3,786	£3,786
27 March 2014	Office Costs	Other	service charges 2013/2014	£2,005	£2,005
25 February 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 January 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
19 December 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
25 November 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 October 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 September 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
27 August 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 July 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 June 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
23 May 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603
24 April 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,603	£1,603

Claims refused and money repaid, 2013-14

6 claims carry an amount IPSA did not pay or an amount repaid to it: £0 not paid and £1,739 repaid. A refusal is not a finding of wrongdoing — most are claims outside the scheme’s rules, or submitted without the evidence IPSA requires — and it is shown because leaving it out would show only the money that went out.

What this page does not show

Whether any of it was justified. IPSA accepted these claims under its own rules and the register records what was paid, not whether it should have been. A large total is not a finding about the member.

Nor how Chris Evans compares with another member. After staffing the largest headings are accommodation and travel, and both are decided mostly by where a constituency is: a member several hundred miles from Westminster is eligible for costs a member with a London seat is not. Two members’ totals are two sets of rules as much as two sets of choices, and the length of service differs too.

It is also not pay. IPSA sets and publishes MPs’ salaries separately and they are not in this register; the staffing figure here is the salaries of the member’s employees.

All MPs’ business costs · Chris Evans’s register of interests and votes · Sources