MLA Expenses for the last five years

Information Standards Freedom of Information Response

Our Ref: FOI 12-22

2 March 2022

Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“FOIA”)

I am writing to confirm that the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission (Assembly Commission) has processed your request dated 7 February 2022 in line with the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In your request, you asked:

“Under the freedom of information act 2000

I am requesting the expense account information for all MLA's from the NI assembly over the past five years?

I am requesting the expense account information for all MP's from the UK Parliament over the past five years?”

The Assembly Commission holds some of the information that you have requested.

Under Section 21 of the FOIA 2000, the Assembly Commission is not required to provide information that is already available in a form accessible by the public.

However, in order to provide advice and assistance under section 16 of the FOIA 2000, I have provided a link below. All expenses and allowances paid to Members are published on the Assembly Commission website.  These reports can be found for the current year to an indicated date and full annual reports going back to 1999.

The Assembly Commission does not hold the requested information for MPs’ expenses. You may wish to contact the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority or access details of MPs’ expenses here.

You have the right to request a formal review by the Assembly Commission and if you wish to do so, please write to me at the above address.

If after such an internal review you are still unhappy with the response, you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF who will undertake an independent review.

The Assembly Commission may publish details of your FOI request and our official response within the organisational disclosure log. The request will be completely anonymised and you will not be identified in any way. This is to meet the requirements as laid out by in the agreed publication scheme with the Information Commissioners’ Office.

Yours sincerely

INFORMATION STANDARDS