MPs’ business costs

Ian Murray

IPSA paid £3,085,870 against 2,424 published rows for Ian Murray between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Edinburgh South BC. 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

143 claims, £189,182 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	£129,454	68.4%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	117	£27,218	14.4%
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.	22	£21,515	11.4%
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	£10,933	5.8%
Miscellaneous	Claims IPSA records under none of the headings above. Called “Miscellaneous Expenses” until 2018-19.	1	£62	0.0%

Every year in the register

Ian Murray’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	161	£83,066	£25,023	£17,834	£10,209	—	£136,132
2011-12	179	£117,449	£25,871	£19,889	£11,009	—	£174,217
2012-13	151	£125,038	£26,950	£19,375	£12,112	—	£183,476
2013-14	143	£129,454	£27,218	£21,515	£10,933	£62	£189,182
2014-15	162	£127,572	£25,790	£19,254	£8,710	—	£181,327
2015-16	133	£116,302	£22,916	£17,740	£10,777	—	£167,735
2016-17	150	£143,284	£23,608	£20,230	£12,557	—	£199,679
2017-18	150	£141,302	£24,149	£21,372	£12,447	—	£199,271
2018-19	140	£151,815	£24,499	£20,525	£12,612	—	£209,451
2019-20	169	£154,169	£24,439	£19,700	£12,656	—	£210,965
2020-21	132	£163,516	£23,274	£13,809	£2,738	—	£203,337
2021-22	173	£179,766	£28,850	£10,206	£10,028	—	£228,849
2022-23	172	£180,592	£25,248	£5,959	£17,726	—	£229,525
2023-24	177	£214,146	£28,988	£5,282	£17,583	—	£265,999
2024-25	154	£231,218	£29,822	£5,027	£13,519	—	£279,586
2025-26	78	—	£20,744	£6,394	—	—	£27,139

A year in which Ian Murray 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	£124,654
Pooled Services: Direct	1	£4,800

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	12	£10,500
Business Rates	1	£2,657
Const Office Electricity	11	£2,338
Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	18	£1,988
Advertising	6	£1,807
Stationery Purchase	13	£1,780

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Accommodation Rent	12	£19,286
Council Tax	1	£1,126
Electricity	7	£940
Television Licence	1	£146
Telephone Usage/Rental	1	£18

Travel

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Aggregated Travel Costs	1	£10,933

Miscellaneous

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Contingency	1	£62

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	£124,654	£124,654
31 March 2014	Travel	Aggregated Travel Costs	Aggregated figure for travel during 2013-14	£10,933	£10,933
29 April 2013	Staffing	Pooled Services: Direct	PRS subscription	£4,800	£4,800
18 April 2013	Office Costs	Business Rates	OFFICE COSTS MARCH APRIL 2013	£2,657	£2,657
25 February 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
24 January 2014	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
19 December 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
25 November 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
24 October 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
24 September 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
27 August 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
24 July 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
24 June 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
29 May 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611
29 April 2013	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£1,611	£1,611

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 Ian Murray 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 · Ian Murray’s register of interests and votes · Sources