MPs claim average of £118,437 in expenses

BRITAIN’S MPs claimed a total of £78 million in expenses last year, according to figures released yesterday.

The 659 MPs claimed an average of £118,437 each on top of the MPs’ basic salary of £57,485 and generous pension. The figure has gone up by £20.56 million in just two years. It means that the average backbencher gets £175,922 a year, compared with the national average wage of just over £20,000.

At the same time officials recommended increasing MPs’ allowances to let them pay their staff more. Details of the expenses and allowances paid to MPs for the last three years were published for the first time yesterday. MPs wanted them released before clauses in the Freedom of Information Act come into effect in January. Ministers have appealed for public understanding of the allowances, insisting that they are vital for them to carry out their jobs.