IPSA

IPSA Consultation – please respond

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IPSA has launched a new consultation: ‘Supporting trust in democracy in the new Parliament’.

IPSA is consulting on proposed changes to how it regulates and publish MPs’ funding, including changes to the Scheme of MPs’ Staffing and Business Costs.

It’s really important that as many MPs and staff as possible respond to the consultation, and you can access the document and the link to the online response tool here: https://www.theipsa.org.uk/publications/consultations

The consultation closes on 13 December 2024.

Dissolution Guidance – South West briefing for Members’ offices

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Members’ offices are offered an opportunity to join an in-person briefing in Bristol with representatives of relevant services from across the House Administration and IPSA to find out more about the Dissolution Guidance and ask any questions they may have. 

To register to attend, please email [email protected]

Financial Year End – 2023-2024

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It’s that time of year, when IPSA Proxies lock themselves in their offices, set their phones to ‘do not disturb’ and bury their heads in spreadsheets. Yes, it’s year end! But don’t worry, IPSA has made things much simpler and, assuming you’ve been reasonably well-organised, sorting out your year-end documentation shouldn’t be too stressful.

Don’t put it off until the last minute, do it now, then if you have any queries, you have time to sort them out.

Key dates:

  • You must submit your year-end form by 23:59 on Friday 19 April 2024.
  • You must have all your payment card lines reconciled by 23:59 on 26 April 2024.
  • You must submit all the evidence for the reimbursement claims listed on your year-end form by 23:59 on Friday 10 May 2024.

You no longer need to submit a year-end for payroll.

It’s a good idea to log into the website regularly to check that there are no tasks outstanding in your task manager.

You can find all of IPSA’s year-end guidance here: https://www.ipsaonline.org.uk/year-end-2023-24 and the staff are really helpful and patient, so give them a call if you’re stuck or unsure about anything.

Already submitted everything? Great! Go and get a brew, then sit down and prepare your paperwork for 2024-2025. Why not make a list of your regular outgoings and work out a forecast, which you can update as you go along throughout the year? You could set up a simple spreadsheet to do this, and then you will always know the current state of your budget and can adjust your spending accordingly.

Financial Year-End Guidance

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It’s that time of year again, when Office Managers/Proxies start their financial year-end process.

If this is your first time doing the year-end submission, don’t panic – it’s really not as scary as it sounds. The staff at IPSA are really helpful and will guide you through it, and they’ve published some useful information here: https://www.ipsaonline.org.uk/year-end-2022-23

No need to book IPSA calls in advance

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There’s no longer any need to book calls to IPSA in advance, you can just call them directly on 020 7811 6400. Your call will be answered by a member of the team, not necessarily your Account Manager or Payroll Officer, who will try to resolve your issue or will forward to a member of the team

However, if you do still want to book a call with a specific team member at a particular time, you can still do this too, using call booking system. You can find the link at the bottom of every IPSA Bulletin.

IPSA Budgets for 2022-2023

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IPSA has confirmed the budgets for MPs’ offices for 2022-2023 and you can read the bulletin here: https://assets.ctfassets.net/s90k6prbkeee/3Qh3dqtF4hBC3WpZ2ADrMi/65f374248b72727a3154424b2a77f5e3/Bulletin__2_March_2022.pdf

and the finer details here: https://www.ipsaonline.org.uk/guidance/reports-and-budgeting#summary-of-2022-23-budgets

You can find an updated monthly and yearly salary calculator here: https://www.ipsaonline.org.uk/guidance/reports-and-budgeting#document-downloads