This is how much each of Manchester MPs cost last year according to official stats

Figures showing how much Manchester’s MPs cost last year have been released.

Statistics from the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) show how much the city’s representatives in the House of Commons cost in the 2020-21 financial year.

The total costs of MPs last year rose by 4%, to £132.5 million.

Business costs are the essential costs incurred by MPs while carrying out their parliamentary duties including staffing, office costs and travel.

How much did Manchester’s MPs cost last year?

The cost of Manchester’s MPs varied considerably last year, with two costing around £230,000 and one being among the cheapest parliamentarians in the country.

The most parsimonious was Blackley and Broughton MP Graham Stringer, who cost the taxpayer £122,170.73.

Manchester Central MP Lucy Powell cost around £205,000, Wythenshawe and Sale East MP Mike Kane cost the taxpayer around £226,000 last year and both Manchester Gorton MP Afzal Khan and Manchester Withington MP Jeff Smith cost around £230,000.

The average cost for a member of parliament in 2020-21 was £203,880.

That means of Manchester’s five Labour MPs, Mr Stringer came in at a below-average cost to the taxpayer.

Mr Stringer spent £100,000 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £83,500 on staff wages and £16,500 on other office expenditures.

And he spent all of his accommodation budget (£11,600), and a further £10,500 on travel and subsistence.

Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture and Media and Sport Ms Powell spent £199,900 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £177,900 on staff wages and £21,900 on other office expenditures.

And she incurred no accommodation costs during this time, but spent £5,400 on travel and subsistence.

Mr Kane spent £197,100 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £164,400 on staff wages and £32,700 on other office expenditures.

And he spent £22,300 of his accommodation budget (of £23,000), and a further £6,600 on travel and subsistence.

Mr Smith spent £213,800 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £186,600 on staff wages and £27,200 on other office expenditures.

And he spent £12,000 of his accommodation budget (of £23,000), and a further £3,700 on travel and subsistence.

Mr Khan spent £207,100 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £183,100 on staff wages and £24,100 on other office expenditures.

And he spent £22,800 of his accommodation budget (of £23,000), and a further £400 on travel and subsistence.

What else did the data say about Manchester MPs’ costs?

The figures also revealed details of the individual costs incurred by MPs.

Mr Kane made 220 individual claims, with Mr Stringer making 166, Mr Khan making 164, Mr Smith making 157 and Ms Powell making 114.

For all five MPs the biggest single claim was for staff payroll, with Mr Stringer claiming £83,486, Mr Smith £184,987.70, Mr Khan £182,214.99, Mr Kane £159,232.88 and Ms Powell £162,931.83.

At the other end of the scale, the smallest one-off expenses claimed were £6.70 for congestion charge and toll by Mr Stringer, 54p for car mileage by Mr Smith, £2.49 for software and applications by Mr Khan, 90p for car mileage by Mr Kane and £2.59 for stationery and printing by Ms Powell.

What did IPSA say about MPs costs?

MPs cannot claim for personal costs, such as food and drink, during their normal working day, and all claims must be compliant with IPSA rules and accompanied by evidence.

IPSA’s chairman, Richard Lloyd, said compliance with the rules was at 99.7% last year.

He added: “By far the largest area of spending is to pay for the salaries of MPs’ staff.

“In the last financial year MPs and their staff changed how they work to provide their constituents with a service during the pandemic.

“We enabled MPs’ staff to work from home, while the amount spent on parliamentary business travel fell to reflect different working patterns.”