Members’ Expenses
Assembly Members are entitled to resources to employ staff and run offices in their constituencies so that they can deal with issues and cases raised by the people they represent. They are also entitled to be reimbursed for any expenses incurred when it has been necessary to stay away from their main home overnight when carrying out official Assembly duties.
The rules surrounding what they are entitled to claim for are contained within a ‘Determination’, the latest version of which can be accessed here. Claims will broadly fall under one of three main allowance types:
Office Costs Allowance (i.e. office expenses related to their duties as an Assembly Member)
Additional Costs Allowance (i.e. expenses incurred in staying overnight away from their main home for the purpose of performing their duties as a Assembly Member)
Travel Costs Allowance (i.e. travel expenses incurred by Assembly Members due to their Assembly duties)
The above claims from 2008 onwards are published online and can be searched using the Allowance Publication System. You can search by month, allowance type, expenditure or even Assembly Member. Claims are listed by the month in which the claim was made, not the date that the expense was incurred and are published three months in arrears.
Figures included are provisional as they are subject to external audit. Also, where disclosure of details of a claim would involve disclosure of sensitive personal data or pose a potential security risk (e.g. information relating to home address, regular journey details or a medical condition) reference to the particulars have been omitted from the disclosure. This is required under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 as amended by the Freedom of Information (Parliament and National Assembly for Wales) Order 2008.
