MPs’ business costs

Rachael Maskell

IPSA paid £1,933,610 against 939 published rows for Rachael Maskell between 2015-16 and 2025-26 as the member for York Central 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, 2022-23

73 claims, £247,379 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.1£221,37589.5%
Office costsRenting and running a constituency office: rent, utilities, equipment, stationery and postage.66£22,2429.0%
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.6£3,7611.5%

Every year in the register

Rachael Maskell’s own years, not the register’s: the first is 2015-16 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 costsTravelStarting up and winding upMiscellaneousTotal
2015-1688£98,039£7,917£3,412£2,538£111,907
2016-17147£129,119£21,440£4,542£685£155,786
2017-18116£137,733£18,058£2,986£158,777
2018-1997£136,711£20,416£3,284£160,411
2019-2080£139,151£14,735£3,801£157,687
2020-2157£187,031£15,538£627£203,196
2021-2259£200,451£17,822£1,582£225£220,079
2022-2373£221,375£22,242£3,761£247,379
2023-2460£236,160£13,903£3,107£253,170
2024-25102£231,064£23,052£2,554£170£256,839
2025-2660£8,380£8,380

A year in which Rachael Maskell 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, 2022-23

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

Staffing

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Payroll1£221,375

Office costs

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Stationery & printing15£5,721
Pooled staffing services2£5,200
Rent11£4,125
Equipment - purchase3£2,303
Software & applications17£1,388
Landline phone & internet - rental & usage11£1,321

Travel

Cost typeClaimsPaid
Rail4£3,615
Other public transport2£146

Largest claims, 2022-23

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 2023StaffingPayrollTotal Staffing budget payroll costs for the 2022-23 year£221,375£221,375
18 May 2022Office CostsPooled staffing servicesParliamentary Research Service (Labour)£4,200£4,200
31 March 2023MP TravelRailAggregated figure for travel during 2022-23£3,340£3,340
31 October 2022Office CostsStationery & printingFULPRINT LTD£1,568£1,568
21 October 2022Office CostsStationery & printingFULPRINT LTD£1,568£1,568
24 September 2022Office CostsEquipment - purchaseComputer, laptop, PC, tablet & accessories£1,329£1,329
11 April 2022Office CostsBought-in servicesProfessional & consultancy£1,233£1,233
13 January 2023Office CostsStationery & printingCARTRIDGE SAVE£1,224£1,224
6 March 2022Office CostsPooled staffing servicesNot Applicable£1,000£1,000
28 June 2022Office CostsEquipment - purchaseComputer, laptop, PC, tablet & accessories£968£968
31 March 2023Office CostsWorking From Home AllowanceAggregated figure for this business cost and budget category in 2022-23£739£739
16 September 2022Office CostsSoftware & applicationsELECTED TECHNOLOGIES£600£600
4 August 2022Office CostsStationery & printingCARTRIDGE SAVE£403£403
2 March 2023Office CostsRent£375£375
2 February 2023Office CostsRent£375£375

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 Rachael Maskell 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 · Rachael Maskell’s register of interests and votes · Sources