Receipts for travel claims made by five MPs

Under the Scheme of MPs’ Business Costs and Expenses (‘the Scheme’), travel and subsistence claims may be made for the costs of travel, and travel-related subsistence incurred by MPs or others, which are in support of the MP’s parliamentary functions. Since April 2017, this has included claims for journeys by MPs’ spouses and partners between the MP’s constituency and London.

Taking your requests for information in order:

IPSA holds the information that you have requested.

Please click here to download a copy of the receipt submitted in support of this claims. In accordance with section 38 of the FOIA, we have redacted the specific time of travel from the receipt. Section 38 states that information is exempt if its disclosure under the FOI Act would, or would be likely to, endanger the safety of any individual. 

After considering the nature of the withheld information it is our opinion that were a disclosure to be made into the public domain it is likely that this information could be used to endanger the safety of the individuals who may regularly utilise the same time trains for London to constituency travel. Although we recognise the public interest in transparency surrounding the publishing of this information, there is also a strong public interest in ensuring that as an organisation we are able to protect our service users from threats to their safety. In our opinion the public interest in protecting the personal safety of MPs’ outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

IPSA can make payments direct to a number of suppliers on behalf of the MP, removing the need for the MP to pay, claim or provide evidence. In the case of travel claims, MPs can book rail tickets using the IPSA account on thetrainline.com website, and IPSA will pay the Trainline direct. MPs do not need to complete a form, reconcile the expense or send any receipts or tickets – IPSA will collect all the information required from the Trainline when the MP books. Similarly, MPs can book rail tickets and air travel using the House of Commons travel provider and IPSA will pay it direct.

The claims in the table above were booked directly with the relevant supplier. As such, we do not hold any receipts or documentation relating to these claims.