MPs’ business costs

Ben Obese-Jecty

IPSA paid £168,297 against 131 published rows for Ben Obese-Jecty between 2024-25 and 2025-26 as the member for Huntingdon 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, 2024-25 to 2025-26

131 claims, £168,297 paid. The headings are IPSA’s own categories grouped; the categories inside each are named on the register page.

CategoryWhat it coversClaimsPaidShare
StaffingThe 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£127,88476.0%
Office costsRenting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.66£19,46711.6%
AccommodationThe 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.51£15,5009.2%
TravelJourneys 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.9£5,4463.2%

Every year in the register

Ben Obese-Jecty’s own years, not the register’s: the first is 2024-25 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.

YearClaimsStaffingOffice costsAccommodationTravelTotal
2024-2598£127,884£11,607£11,970£5,446£156,907
2025-2633£7,860£3,530£11,390

A year in which Ben Obese-Jecty 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, 2024-25 to 2025-26

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

Staffing

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Payroll1£122,420
Pooled staffing services1£5,265
Working From Home Allowance1£123
Volunteer - agreed arrangement costs2£76

Office costs

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Equipment - purchase16£7,497
Stationery & printing37£7,223
Software & applications3£3,516
Advertising and contact cards3£754
Postage & couriers1£278
Insurance - contents2£102

Accommodation

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Rent8£7,190
Hotel - London5£3,288
Council tax8£3,208
Utilities30£1,814

Travel

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Rail5£3,404
Mileage - car2£2,011
Vehicle hire cost1£20
Other public transport1£11

Largest claims, 2024-25 to 2025-26

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.

DateCategoryCost typeDescriptionClaimedPaid
31 March 2025StaffingPayrollTotal Staffing budget payroll costs for the 2024-25 year£122,420£122,420
17 September 2024StaffingPooled staffing servicesPolicy Research Unit (Conservative)£5,265£5,265
27 March 2025Office CostsEquipment - purchaseSundries£2,824£2,824
28 March 2025Office CostsEquipment - purchasePrinter, photocopier & scanner£2,676£2,676
31 March 2025Staff TravelRailAggregated figure for travel during 2024-25£2,176£2,176
1 May 2025AccommodationCouncil taxLONDON BOROUGH OF ENFI£2,164£2,164
19 March 2025Office CostsStationery & printingAMAZON [***] [200011725-6787]£1,734£1,734
16 June 2025Office CostsSoftware & applicationsELECTED TECHNOLOGIES£1,476£1,476
5 September 2024Office CostsSoftware & applicationsELECTED TECHNOLOGIES£1,440£1,440
31 March 2025MP TravelMileage - carAggregated figure for travel during 2024-25£1,323£1,323
27 March 2025Office CostsEquipment - purchaseSundries£1,098£1,098
14 March 2025AccommodationRent[***] - FASTER PAYMENT RENT £1,700 - [***] [200011495-55]£1,006£1,006
9 March 2025AccommodationHotel - London[***][***][***] [200011725-4547]£995£995
6 January 2025AccommodationRent£900£900
3 December 2024AccommodationRent£900£900

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 Ben Obese-Jecty 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 · Ben Obese-Jecty’s register of interests and votes · Sources