MPs’ business costs

Jessica Morden

IPSA paid £2,858,063 against 1,933 published rows for Jessica Morden between 2010-11 and 2025-26 as the member for Newport East 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, 2018-19

79 claims, £184,615 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.	1	£148,056	80.2%
Office costs	Renting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.	53	£19,343	10.5%
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	£10,798	5.8%
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	£6,044	3.3%
Miscellaneous	Claims IPSA records under none of the headings above. Called “Miscellaneous Expenses” until 2018-19.	2	£374	0.2%

Every year in the register

Jessica Morden’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	87	£85,404	£12,724	£1,257	£7,484	—	£106,869
2011-12	106	£108,094	£19,042	£9,304	£6,569	£628	£143,637
2012-13	120	£102,994	£20,712	£10,371	£5,335	—	£139,412
2013-14	134	£122,691	£21,685	£9,330	£5,446	—	£159,151
2014-15	113	£128,956	£20,698	£9,864	£5,951	£619	£166,088
2015-16	88	£133,171	£19,731	£9,737	£4,824	£316	£167,778
2016-17	87	£131,103	£20,927	£10,041	£5,615	£339	£168,026
2017-18	81	£138,159	£16,674	£9,823	£3,811	£350	£168,816
2018-19	79	£148,056	£19,343	£10,798	£6,044	£374	£184,615
2019-20	119	£149,472	£20,067	£12,363	£5,351	—	£187,254
2020-21	147	£163,237	£19,033	£14,957	£2,930	—	£200,156
2021-22	160	£181,091	£17,060	£16,453	£7,021	—	£221,625
2022-23	193	£200,977	£21,004	£22,930	£10,369	—	£255,280
2023-24	189	£207,873	£23,609	£29,658	£9,460	—	£270,601
2024-25	146	£232,086	£27,419	£27,476	£9,460	—	£296,441
2025-26	84	—	£15,541	£6,772	—	—	£22,313

A year in which Jessica Morden 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, 2018-19

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

Staffing

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Payroll	1	£148,056

Office costs

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Const Office Rent	5	£10,366
Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	18	£3,651
IT/Other Equipment Hire	5	£2,469
Business Rates	1	£1,006
Stationery Purchase	11	£642
Computer SW Purchase	1	£500

Accommodation

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Accommodation Rent	13	£8,615
Service Charges	2	£702
Council Tax	1	£693
Water	2	£670
Gas	4	£118

Travel

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Aggregated Travel Costs	1	£6,044

Miscellaneous

Cost type	Claims	Paid
Contingency	2	£374

Largest claims, 2018-19

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 2019	Staffing	Payroll	Total Staffing budget payroll costs for the 2018-19 year	£148,056	£148,056
31 March 2019	Travel	Aggregated Travel Costs	Aggregated figure for travel during 2018-19	£6,044	£6,044
27 February 2019	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	office rent March 19	£2,081	£2,081
28 November 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	office rent Dec 18	£2,081	£2,081
18 September 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	office rent Sept 18	£2,081	£2,081
31 May 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	office rent	£2,081	£2,081
1 April 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Rent	office rent	£2,040	£2,040
10 April 2018	Office Costs	Business Rates	travelcard	£1,006	£1,006
15 June 2018	Office Costs	Const Office Tel. Usage/Rental	travel card	£833	£833
26 February 2019	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700
29 January 2019	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700
19 December 2018	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700
22 November 2018	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700
24 October 2018	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700
25 September 2018	Accommodation	Accommodation Rent	—	£700	£700

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 Jessica Morden 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 · Jessica Morden’s register of interests and votes · Sources