MPs’ business costs

Sir John Whittingdale

IPSA paid £2,485,082 against 1,456 published rows for Sir John Whittingdale between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Maldon 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, 2011-12

93 claims, £101,370 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.	2	£86,749	85.6%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	63	£7,500	7.4%
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.	27	£3,550	3.5%
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	£3,570	3.5%

Every year in the register

Sir John Whittingdale’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	83	£73,776	£4,449	£4,943	£2,706	—	£85,874
2011-12	93	£86,749	£7,500	£3,550	£3,570	—	£101,370
2012-13	89	£87,570	£8,295	£15,763	£4,171	—	£115,799
2013-14	80	£94,981	£6,793	£20,000	£4,654	—	£126,428
2014-15	91	£96,062	£9,001	£20,600	£4,660	—	£130,323
2015-16	89	£102,501	£7,587	£20,600	£2,834	—	£133,522
2016-17	105	£105,067	£9,681	£20,600	£4,344	—	£139,692
2017-18	85	£130,310	£11,101	£22,760	£3,279	—	£167,450
2018-19	84	£148,378	£13,562	£20,946	£4,955	—	£187,841
2019-20	101	£146,392	£12,896	£24,830	£2,845	—	£186,963
2020-21	86	£175,006	£13,911	£19,100	£2,773	—	£210,791
2021-22	68	£167,258	£10,474	£23,293	£3,876	—	£204,901
2022-23	113	£166,205	£15,178	£26,130	£4,447	—	£211,960
2023-24	116	£179,501	£16,705	£26,840	£4,396	£912	£228,353
2024-25	103	£200,835	£9,586	£29,290	£4,415	—	£244,125
2025-26	70	—	£9,690	—	—	—	£9,690

A year in which Sir John Whittingdale 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, 2011-12

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

Staffing

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Payroll	1	£82,789
Pooled Staffing Services	1	£3,960

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	4	£1,500
Payment Telephone/Mobile	14	£1,228
Legal Expenses Insurance	1	£636
Stationery Purchase	4	£609
Professional Services	1	£600
Computer HW Purchase	1	£571

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Mortgage Interest	12	£2,019
Home Contents Insurance	1	£458
Telephone Usage/Rental	4	£445
Water	2	£342
Television Licence	1	£146
Electricity	4	£93

Travel

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Aggregated Travel Costs	1	£3,570

Largest claims, 2011-12

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 2012	Staffing	Payroll	Total payroll costs for the 2011-12 year	£82,789	£82,789
3 June 2011	Staffing	Pooled Staffing Services	PRU	£3,960	£3,960
31 March 2012	Travel	Aggregated Travel Costs	Aggregated figure for travel during 2011-12	£3,570	£3,570
11 August 2011	Office Costs	Legal Expenses Insurance	EPL Insurance	£636	£636
17 August 2011	Office Costs	Professional Services	Legal Expenses	£600	£600
17 November 2011	Office Costs	Computer HW Purchase	Office Costs: Oct - Nov 2011	£571	£571
14 December 2011	Accommodation	Home Contents Insurance	London Accommodation Expenses	£458	£458
19 April 2011	Office Costs	Stationery Purchase	Payment Card Mar/Apr	£414	£414
28 December 2011	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£375	£375
15 September 2011	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	—	£375	£375
25 July 2011	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	Office Rental - April 2011	£375	£375
1 July 2011	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	Office Rental - July 2011	£375	£375
18 July 2011	Office Costs	Advertising	Office Costs: May - Jul 2011	£360	£360
31 May 2011	Accommodation	Mortgage Interest	London Accommodation Expenses	£173	£173
31 July 2011	Accommodation	Mortgage Interest	London Accommodation Expenses	£172	£172

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 Sir John Whittingdale 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 · Sir John Whittingdale’s register of interests and votes · Sources