Additional Costs Allowance And Second Homes

EDM number 805 in 2008-09, proposed by Greg Mulholland on 12/02/2009.
Categorised under the topic of Members of Parliament.

That this House notes that the additional costs allowance (ACA) is designed to fund the necessary costs of a second home or equivalent hotel costs; further notes that there have been too many incidences of hon. Members and right hon. Members using it for purposes that, whilst not being against the rules, would not meet this definition, and that this is damaging to the reputation of the House; calls for the rules to be tightened to ensure that ACA is only used for necessary and justifiable costs associated with a necessary second home or equivalent hotel costs and for rules regarding which residence hon. Members designate as their main residence to be clarified, so that hon. Members receive allowances based upon what is genuinely their second home, rather than any financial advantage; believes that those hon. Members who are given a residence as a result of the office they hold should not be given an additional costs allowance designed to cover the costs of a second home; and further calls for the ring-fencing of the bulk of the additional costs allowance designed to fund a second home, so that it can only be spent on rent, mortgage payments or hotel costs and not other purposes, so that hon. Members who do not have to pay rent or mortgage on a second home, or hotel costs, are not entitled to the same allowances as other hon. Members who do.

This motion has been signed by a total of 10 MPs.