MPs’ business costs

Helen Grant

IPSA paid £2,750,803 against 2,305 published rows for Helen Grant between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Maidstone and The Weald CC, then Maidstone and Malling 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, 2018-19

112 claims, £169,246 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.	5	£142,460	84.2%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	96	£23,405	13.8%
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.	10	£2,606	1.5%
Miscellaneous	Claims IPSA records under none of the headings above. Called “Miscellaneous Expenses” until 2018-19.	1	£775	0.5%

Every year in the register

Helen Grant’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	123	£80,005	£14,111	£10,654	£1,322	—	£106,093
2011-12	117	£95,887	£16,817	£2,383	£974	—	£116,062
2012-13	168	£116,795	£19,292	£16,889	£297	—	£153,273
2013-14	150	£118,653	£19,250	£12,310	£313	—	£150,527
2014-15	138	£137,618	£22,687	£12,504	£896	—	£173,704
2015-16	106	£137,187	£17,216	£8,509	£297	—	£163,209
2016-17	104	£135,986	£17,386	£6,150	£1,017	—	£160,539
2017-18	129	£142,455	£23,090	£11,295	£881	—	£177,721
2018-19	112	£142,460	£23,405	£2,606	—	£775	£169,246
2019-20	181	£152,390	£25,130	£10,087	—	—	£187,606
2020-21	178	£174,698	£28,171	£17,415	—	£1,134	£221,418
2021-22	186	£160,950	£28,271	£23,557	£64	—	£212,842
2022-23	159	£171,945	£23,110	£25,351	£704	—	£221,110
2023-24	146	£194,765	£28,294	£7,850	£1,050	—	£231,959
2024-25	185	£220,576	£31,122	£19,005	£3,098	£2,369	£276,169
2025-26	123	—	£23,089	£6,236	—	—	£29,324

A year in which Helen Grant 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, 2018-19

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

Staffing

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Payroll	1	£142,394
Public Tr UND Volunteer	1	£30
Public Tr RAIL Volunteer - SG	2	£27
Food & Drink Volunteer	1	£9

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	12	£9,533
Professional Services: Direct	2	£3,994
Advertising	10	£2,207
Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	15	£1,808
Stationery Purchase	7	£1,688
Tel/Mobile Purchase	6	£946

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Accommodation Rent	4	£1,450
Electricity	3	£685
Council Tax	1	£263
Water	1	£165
Telephone Usage/Rental	1	£43

Miscellaneous

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Contingency	1	£775

Largest claims, 2018-19

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 2019	Staffing	Payroll	Total Staffing budget payroll costs for the 2018-19 year	£142,394	£142,394
6 April 2018	Office Costs	Professional Services: Direct	PRU	£3,094	£3,094
17 April 2018	Office Costs	Stationery Purchase	XMA Ltd	£1,231	£1,231
6 April 2018	Office Costs	Professional Services: Direct	PRU	£900	£900
26 February 2019	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
29 January 2019	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
19 December 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
22 November 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
24 October 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
25 September 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
25 August 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
25 July 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
29 June 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
29 May 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794
25 April 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£794	£794

Claims refused and money repaid, 2018-19

1 claim carries an amount IPSA did not pay or an amount repaid to it: £0 not paid and £273 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 Helen Grant 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 · Helen Grant’s register of interests and votes · Sources