MPs’ business costs

Bill Esterson

IPSA paid £3,124,794 against 2,153 published rows for Bill Esterson between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Sefton Central 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, 2013-14

137 claims, £178,494 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	£133,797	75.0%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	110	£19,095	10.7%
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.	24	£17,214	9.6%
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	£8,387	4.7%

Every year in the register

Bill Esterson’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	99	£92,966	£18,452	£12,818	£8,804	—	£133,039
2011-12	156	£123,209	£27,300	£16,117	£13,749	—	£180,375
2012-13	123	£144,316	£19,320	£20,803	£8,082	—	£192,520
2013-14	137	£133,797	£19,095	£17,214	£8,387	—	£178,494
2014-15	120	£138,492	£20,358	£20,090	£9,929	£2,310	£191,178
2015-16	101	£143,779	£16,045	£18,739	£12,676	—	£191,239
2016-17	100	£139,864	£14,084	£22,418	£13,093	—	£189,459
2017-18	100	£146,577	£16,034	£20,889	£11,748	—	£195,248
2018-19	135	£140,579	£16,170	£22,568	£10,064	—	£189,381
2019-20	147	£156,017	£24,547	£15,159	£9,577	—	£205,299
2020-21	125	£170,122	£26,246	£5,725	£3,187	—	£205,281
2021-22	142	£177,749	£19,403	£8,682	£8,926	—	£214,761
2022-23	247	£214,708	£24,935	£13,702	£14,502	—	£267,848
2023-24	206	£222,107	£22,198	£20,127	£14,196	—	£278,628
2024-25	125	£221,985	£26,011	£22,273	£12,189	—	£282,460
2025-26	90	—	£12,206	£17,377	—	—	£29,584

A year in which Bill Esterson 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, 2013-14

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

Staffing

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Payroll	1	£133,676
Public Tr UND Volunteer	1	£121

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	4	£4,050
Computer HW Purchase	9	£3,541
Stationery Purchase	30	£3,514
Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	24	£2,501
IT/Other Equipment Hire	4	£909
Professional Services	5	£713

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Accommodation Rent	12	£16,224
Water	1	£304
Electricity	3	£220
Telephone Usage/Rental	4	£172
Gas	3	£149
Television Licence	1	£146

Travel

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Aggregated Travel Costs	1	£8,387

Largest claims, 2013-14

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 2014	Staffing	Payroll	Total payroll costs for the 2013-14 year	£133,676	£133,676
31 March 2014	Travel	Aggregated Travel Costs	Aggregated figure for travel during 2013-14	£8,387	£8,387
4 June 2013	Office Costs	Computer HW Purchase	Office costs	£1,780	£1,780
25 February 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 January 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
19 December 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
25 November 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 October 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 September 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
27 August 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 July 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 June 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
23 May 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
24 April 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352
1 April 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,352	£1,352

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 Bill Esterson 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 · Bill Esterson’s register of interests and votes · Sources