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Published on: 03/11/2021 12:00 PMReported by: editor
By Richard Hands
Official statistics reveal huge and puzzling disparities in the amount Sefton’s MPs spend on postage with the Southport MP appearing to have spent over 11 times more in the last four years than the Bootle MP.
Southport’s MP spent £29,699 compared with the Bootle MPs modest £2,688. Sefton Central’s MP recorded £18,340.
Former Sefton Mayor and councillor, Richard Hands is determined to solve the mystery having recently received an unsolicited mailshot from the Southport MP.
“Postage these days is so expensive. As we, the taxpayers, are paying for all letters sent by an MP in an official capacity, it deserves investigation.
I do not believe that there are fewer problems demanding an MP’s attention in Bootle than in Southport or that people are slow to raise them in the south of the borough”
The variations between Sefton MPs could be explained in part by the varying amounts of unsolicited mail sent by MPs”.
Enquiries are currently being made with IPSA- the parliamentary standards authority as to whether they can assess how much of an MP’s mailings are replies and enquiries on behalf of constituents and how much are completely unsolicited mail. (Enquiry is currently with the IPSA Board having been passed on)
“It would be genuinely interesting to see the percentage. I am sure I am not alone in having received a surprise letter.
Not all unsolicited mail from an MP is always against the rules, but it can at times blur the distinction between an MP doing their job and an MP promoting themselves.
In the letter I received there was a card with pictures of the MP that would not be out of place in an election leaflet.
With many Sefton families struggling to get by this winter, we all want to see public money spent as well as possible.
However, it seems possible currently for MPs to blanket-mail areas on topics that individual residents may not have personally raised themselves and or be particularly pre-occupied by.
This would be more controversial if the issue an MP wanted to mailshot about was one which was likely to feature in an election.
No-one wants to inhibit an MP from doing their job but the solution is obviously transparency and disclosure. I will be suggesting to IPSA that all MPs provide a record of the volume and cost of unsolicited mailshots. ”
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Originally Posted by
editor
Official statistics reveal huge and puzzling disparities in the amount Sefton’s MPs spend on postage with the Southport MP appearing to have spent over 11 times more in the last four years than the Bootle MP.
Southport’s MP spent £29,699 compared with the Bootle MPs modest £2,688. Sefton Central’s MP recorded £18,340.
Report by: Richard Hands
Any chance of Mr Hands giving us the source of these figures?
I looked on IPSA (Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, the independent body that regulates and administers the business costs and decides the pay and pensions of the 650 elected MPs and their staff in the UK.), and can't see them on there.
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Originally Posted by
editor
By Richard Hands Official statistics reveal huge and puzzling disparities in the amount Sefton’s MPs spend on postage with the Southport MP appearing to have spent over 11 times more in the last four years than the Bootle MP. Southport’s MP spent £29,699 compared with the Bootle MPs modest £2,688. Sefton Central’s MP recorded £18,340.
Former Sefton Mayor and councillor, Richard Hands is determined to solve the mystery having recently received an unsolicited mailshot from the Southport MP. The variations between Sefton MPs could be explained in part by the varying amounts of unsolicited mail sent by MPs”. Enquiries are currently being made with IPSA- the parliamentary standards authority as to whether they can assess how much of an MP’s mailings are replies and enquiries on behalf of constituents and how much are completely unsolicited mail.
(Enquiry is currently with the IPSA Board having been passed on)“It would be genuinely interesting to see the percentage. I am sure I am not alone in having received a surprise letter.Not all unsolicited mail from an MP is always against the rules, but it can at times blur the distinction between an MP doing their job and an MP promoting themselves.In the letter I received there was a card with pictures of the MP that would not be out of place in an election leaflet.
With many Sefton families struggling to get by this winter, we all want to see public money spent as well as possible.However, it seems possible currently for MPs to blanket-mail areas on topics that individual residents may not have personally raised themselves and or be particularly pre-occupied by.This would be more controversial if the issue an MP wanted to mailshot about was one which was likely to feature in an election. No-one wants to inhibit an MP from doing their job but the solution is obviously transparency and disclosure. I will be suggesting to IPSA that all MPs provide a record of the volume and cost of unsolicited mailshots. ”
looks like richard hands is just say bored at home when the MP for southport sends a letter out he is informing the residents of an issue , its a shame the lib dums didnt do the same back when pugh was destroying the town
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Mr Sewage trying to drum up support?
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Originally Posted by
Nash
Mr Sewage trying to drum up support?
Nothing wrong with Southport's Tory MP trying to drum up support. It's having the taxpayer pay for the postage which is the issue.
But having regard to the way he voted on the Tory MP Sleaze issue today, he's clearly got no judgement on these sort of issues.
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