REDDITCH MP Rachel Maclean claimed costs of around £218,000 last year, new figures reveal.

Figures from the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority show the Conservative MP's business costs for the 2020-21 financial year were £218,125.95.

The MP's costs were up from £208,953.86 the year before, and above the average for all Members of Parliament, of £203,880.

The Redditch MP, who also serves as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Safeguarding, spent £190,800 on office running costs in 2020-21, including £162,400 on staff wages and £28,300 on other office expenditures.

She also spent £23,000 on accommodation, and a further £4,300 on travel and subsistence.

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

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.

Rachel Maclean MP said: “Although the headline figure may grab people’s attention, it is important to stress that 74% of my office costs are paying the wages of my hard-working staff. I represent around 84,000 people and I could not do this job by myself. Every MP needs a fantastic team of people behind them to support them in their work. Over the period of 2020/21, my team and I dealt with more than 6,600 individual cases.

“MPs are given a budget to help run their office. This is used to provide my staff with the equipment and resources they need to support me in my role. Without this budget I would not be able to represent my constituents as I wouldn’t have the equipment or resources needed to do my job effectively.

“All MPs operate in slightly different ways. I chose to set up an office in Redditch town centre and employ people to work on the issues that matter most to my constituents. Some MPs don’t even have an office in their constituency.

“During the pandemic, IPSA also increased MPs’ budgets due to the massive rise in correspondence MPs received from their constituents. Like many MPs, I had to take on an additional member of staff to help cope with the increased workload.

“When I’m not at home in Redditch, I need somewhere to stay in London in order to represent my constituents in the House of Commons. I need to be in Westminster in order to vote and deliver on the promises my constituents re-elected me to deliver. IPSA enables MPs to cover the costs of accommodation.

“And as I live in Redditch, this also means I have to travel by train between our constituency and London for work and this is therefore reflected in my travel costs. I travel standard class. Not all MPs live in their constituency, but it has always been important to me that I do live in my constituency and I have done for four years now.

“I also want to bust the myth that MPs get free meals in Parliament, they don’t. MPs cannot claim for any food or drink. I only claim for the rent I need to stay in London in order to do my job, and never anything else associated with the costs of living in London for part of the week. All other costs such as utility bills and broadband, which I need for work, and items like furniture and TV licenses are all paid for out of my own pocket.

“The majority of my staff live in Redditch, but they can be required to work in London, sometimes resulting in an overnight stay. This is commonplace for the staff of MPs. IPSA enable MPs’ staff to claim for travel costs and overnight stays. My hard-working and dedicated team ought to be able to claim for travel expenses which is no different to that of any other employee in a business.

“My total business costs are listed transparently online, and I am always conscious that this is taxpayer’s money.”

The average cost of an MP was up 29%, from £158,103, in 2019-20.

Kit Malthouse was the most expensive MP attending the Cabinet in 2020-21, with total costs of £244,312.

This was compared to £178,406 for Prime Minister Boris Johnson and £168,109 for Sir Keir Starmer.