The latest figures detailing MPs allowances have been published on the Parliament website.
For further information please visit:
http://mpsallowances.parliament.uk/mpslordsandoffices/hocallowances/allowances-by-mp/adrian-sanders/
5 entries categorized "Expenses & Allowances"
17/02/2010
18/06/2009
Open letter from Adrian Sanders on Parliamentary allowances
18th June 2009
Dear Constituent,
I have always held the view that it is your money I spend in carrying out my duties and you have a right to know how it is being spent.
This is why I fully support transparency and accountability on MPs’ expenses and have consistently voted, or not voted - see explanatory blog entry from July 08 below - for reform.
You can verify this on www.theyworkforyou.com the independent website that monitors MPs. It records me as having a 60.7 per cent rating in favour of openness – joint first among Devon’s 11 MPs.*
The publication of the second home allowance details show that my claims are the second lowest in the county. They also show they were among the lowest of all MPs in the House of Commons.
This should not be a surprise as I have never claimed for mortgage interest, nor have I ‘flipped’ my second home address to maximise personal financial benefit.
All claims will shortly be subjected to an independent audit by an external company. They will look at every claim form, invoice and piece of correspondence going back to 2004 and judge it against the rules at the time and the spirit of the rules today. They will have the power to force repayments and call in the police if necessary.
It is a huge privilege to be allowed to represent my home town in Parliament. I always strive to serve my constituents well and provide you with value for money and will continue to do so in future.
With very best wishes,
Adrian Sanders MP
Explanatory note: You will see that some sections of the receipts have been blacked out as required by the Data Protection Act 1998 and the House of Commons Fees Office. I have allowed the Herald Express access to the unedited claim forms in order that they can verify that these areas do not hide purchases, but are to protect sensitive information such as bank account details, addresses and telephone numbers and information which could be used to identify other people.
MYSPACE blog from Friday, July 04, 2008
| | Abstentions For Progress I have always held the view that it is wrong for MPs to vote on their own salaries, terms and conditions. It's why I never vote when these matters come before the House. Now that's all fine and dandy and I suspect most people would agree with me. The question is what do you do instead and how do you bring it about? One of the things you could do is to ask an independent person to investigate the situation and come up with a series of recommendations. That's exactly what the Government did, appointed someone to report. Only they then promptly disagreed with the recommendations and put forward an alternative set of proposals. That then got up the noses of some MPs who understandably felt it was wrong to have set up an independent review only to ignore its findings, and they then fought a losing battle to defeat the Government on this matter. If MPs keep voting for or against whatever is on the agenda they will continue to get blamed for whatever emerges from the process. This strategy is slowing catching on as two thirds of MPs not on the Government pay-roll failed to vote yesterday, suggesting the numbers of abstentions for progress are on the rise. So if anyone asks; I did not vote for the above inflation pay rise. I did not vote for the retention of the 'John Lewis' list. And I did not vote to prevent an independent audit of how I spend taxpayers' money. |
*Voting Record on Transparency - www.theyworkforyou.com
Sanders (Lib Dem, Torbay) 60.7%
Bradshaw (Labour, Exeter) 60.7%
Younger-Ross (Lib Dem, Teignbridge) 57.6%
Browning (Con, Tiverton & Honiton) 54.0%
Gilroy (Labour, Plymouth Sutton) 53.6%
Harvey (Lib Dem, North Devon) 53.6%
Seabeck (Labour, Plymouth Devonport) 50.0%
Steen (Con, Totnes) 46.0%
Swire (Con, East Devon) 46.0%
Cox (Con, Devon West & Torridge) Never voted for transparency
Streeter (Con, Devon South West) Never voted for transparency
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