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Amend
the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009 to require the Independent
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Parliamentary Standards Authority
to reduce the cost and change the schemes |
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of payment of Members of the
House of Commons; and for connected |
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Be
it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty,
by and with the advice and |
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consent of the Lords Spiritual
and Temporal, and Commons, in this present |
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Parliament assembled, and
by the authority of the same, as follows:— |
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(1) |
After section 3A of the Parliamentary
Standards Act 2009 there is inserted— |
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“3B |
The
Members’ Allowance |
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The
Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority must prepare a |
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scheme
which would replace the payment of salaries and certain |
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allowances
to MPs provided for in sections 4, 4A and 5 of this Act with |
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a
Members’ Allowance, as required by the Parliamentary Standards
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(2) |
The Independent Parliamentary
Standards Authority (“the IPSA”) must |
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prepare the first Members’
Allowance scheme before the end of the period of |
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8 weeks beginning with the
day on which this Act is passed, and may prepare |
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revisions (“a revision”)
at any time it considers appropriate. |
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(3) |
A Members’ Allowance
scheme must— |
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(a) |
provide for the payment of
a Members’ Allowance in the form of a |
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monthly payment to each MP,
at a level determined on the basis of— |
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(i) |
the calculation in the
Schedule to this Act (“the initial |
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(ii) |
the factors set out in
paragraphs (b) to (d) of this subsection, and |
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(iii) |
the considerations referred
to in subsection (4) of this section, |
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(b) |
make provision for the IPSA
to review the level of the Members’ |
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Allowance in time for the
beginning of each new Parliament, taking |
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account of GDP growth, the
GDP deflator, the retail prices index, the |
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consumer price index and such
other factors as the IPSA considers |
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(c) |
provide for a regional weighting
of the Members’ Allowance according |
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to the distance of a Member’s
constituency from Westminster, to a |
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maximum total value as set
out in Step 5 of the initial calculation, and |
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(d) |
be administered with the
objective that the total annual cost of |
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administering the scheme by
the IPSA is no more than 2.5% of the total |
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value of payments made under
the scheme in that year (“the |
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administration costs objective”).
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(4) |
The IPSA should take into
account that the Members’ Allowance must enable |
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an MP to perform their parliamentary,
constituency and national duties when |
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making its final proposal
of the level of the Members’ Allowance. |
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(5) |
Separate provision must
continue to be made under section 5 of the |
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Parliamentary Standards Act
2009 (MPs’ allowances scheme) for the payment |
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of Staffing Expenditure and
Constituency Office Rental Expenditure. |
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(6) |
The IPSA must set out in
its proposed scheme guidance on the likely tax status |
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of the Members’ Allowance,
having consulted HMRC for this purpose. |
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2 |
Consideration
of a Members’ Allowance scheme by the House of Commons |
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(1) |
The Speaker must lay a Members’
Allowance scheme (or revision) before the |
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(2) |
When the scheme (or revision)
is laid, the IPSA must publish in a way it |
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(a) |
the scheme (or revision),
and |
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(b) |
a statement of its reasons
for proposing that scheme (or revision). |
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(3) |
A Minister must by regulations
made by statutory instrument bring a scheme |
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(or revision) proposed by
the IPSA under section 2(1) into effect, including |
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making such transitional,
transitory or saving provision as he considers |
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(4) |
A Minister must lay a draft
of the regulations referred to in section 2(3) within |
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12 weeks of the Speaker laying
the Members’ Allowance scheme (or revision) |
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before the House of Commons.
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(5) |
A statutory instrument containing
regulations under section 2(3) may not be |
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made unless a draft of the
instrument has been laid before and approved by a |
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resolution of the House of
Commons. |
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(6) |
If the regulations referred
to in section 2(3) are not approved by the House of |
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Commons within four months
of being laid, the IPSA must propose a revised |
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scheme under section 1 of
this Act. |
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3 |
The
IPSA administration costs objective |
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(1) |
The IPSA must aim to limit
the administrative costs of the Members’ |
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Allowance scheme to no more
than 2.5% of the total value of payments made |
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under the scheme in any given
financial year (“the administration costs |
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(2) |
The IPSA must make an annual
assessment of whether it has met this objective |
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on the basis of the IPSA’s
accounts for that year. |
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1 |
The IPSA must make its
initial calculation of the Members’ Allowance as |
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2 |
Take the total cost of
payments to MPs, associated payments and the cost of |
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administering those allowances
paid to MPs under the relevant resolutions |
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of the House of Commons
(except those relating to additional salaries for |
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office holders) in respect
of the twelve months ending with 5 April 2010, |
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(a) |
salary payments
to MPs, |
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(b) |
employer’s
national insurance contributions for MPs, |
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(c) |
basic employer pension
payments for MPs, |
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(d) |
Personal Additional
Accommodation Expenditure and the London |
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(h) |
an estimate by
the IPSA of the amount that MPs did not claim but |
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(i) |
an estimate by
the IPSA of the total cost of administering the |
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payments listed
in this Schedule, taking account of the staff costs and |
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associated overhead
costs of both the House of Commons and the |
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(j) |
an estimate by
the IPSA of that part of the costs associated with the |
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following committees
and other bodies relevant to the payments |
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(i) |
the Speaker’s
Committee for the IPSA, |
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(ii) |
the Members’
Estimate Committee, |
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(iii) |
the Members’
Estimate Audit Committee, |
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(iv) |
the Administration
Estimate Audit Committee, |
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(v) |
the Committee
on Members’ Allowances, |
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(vi) |
the House of
Commons Commission, |
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(vii) |
the Committee
on Standards in Public Life, and |
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(viii) |
the Senior Salaries
Review Body, |
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(k) |
an estimate by
the IPSA of the cost of administration incurred by |
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MPs and their staff
relevant to the payments listed in this Schedule, |
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(l) |
any other associated
costs to be determined by the IPSA. |
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3 |
Deduct 5% from the total
calculated in Step 1. |
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4 |
Uprate this figure by
taking into account certain indices to be determined by |
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the IPSA to arrive at
an appropriate total figure for each financial year |
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during the remainder of
the relevant Parliament. |
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5 |
Deduct a maximum of 2.5%
from the total described in Step 3 to be set aside |
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for each financial year
of the relevant Parliament for the IPSA administration |
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6 |
Deduct up to 17.5% from
the total described in Step 3 to be used as a fund |
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for each financial year
of the relevant Parliament for regional weighting, |
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Disability Assistance,
Security Assistance, Contingency Payments and such |
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other allowances and payments
not already mentioned in this Schedule to |
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be determined by the IPSA. |
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7 |
Divide the total arrived
at in Step 5 by the number of seats in the House of |
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Commons to make the initial
calculation of the Members’ Allowance for |
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each financial year of
the relevant Parliament. |
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