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Will MPs use their Communications Allowance effectively?

  • Posted by Tom Marchbanks
  • 18 May 2007

The Temple's ancient staircases and cobbled streets lent a historic setting to a New Media Awards debate.

The debate: "Will MPs use their Communications Allowance effectively?" focused on the merits of the £10,000 MPs would be given to help communicate with the electorate.

On the panel was: David Wilcox, social media consultant, Tom Steinberg, director of mySociety and Derek Wyatt MP (chair of the All Party Internet Group).

Listening to the speakers, the audience where treated to surroundings akin a Mayfair club, complete with marble columns and a 1920s bar.

The diverse audience, included someone who had set up a magazine aimed at the homeless and a former journalist who was using his pod casting skills to empower local action.

As the debate commenced, it became clear there were reservations about how well the allowance had been thought through. Another issue was whether the money would, or should be used for internet communication.

Derek Wyatt MP regarded the funding as "very important" for those MPs on a small communications budget and thought "there would have been many more" in the audience who felt the £10,000 was a waste. Tom Steinberg was less enthusiastic, fearful the money might be misspent on political spam.

In the end, the conclusion seemed to be that there were no expectations of the allowance being used to its full potential.


You can view more photos from the event on Flickr and listen to the Podcast

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3 comments from readers

  • Thanks for such a great evening. I've now expanded on the idea I floated then - run workshop sessions where MPs and others co-design what's best locally or nationally. Maybe New Media Awards would host a dry-run to see if that's crazy or creative. More here http://www.designingforcivilsociety.org/2007/05/how_can_mps_...

    Submitted by David Wilcox, 19 May 2007

  • Having done a search on most of the major search engines I can find a lot about how much MP's spend on communicating to their voters and how much more they need but not enough on the breakdown of costs this involves.

    I am sure they have to do it for accounting purposes so why not share it with the public rather than have to request it under Freedom of Information Act. Their staff should publish honestly on their website the following information:

    a) Payments made or received by any form of media and the exact amount each month so if their voters want to question the final amount this helps in the break down.

    b) Setting up and monitoring websites such as blogs, articles and a personal website stating all of their activities including buying web space or marketing themselves on sites such as google.

    c) Postage: How many letters are sent to parishioners which in tern how much is spent on related stationery. Is there a significant number sent to a few people and could this be reduced in any way?

    d) Phone Bills: What they actually spend on contract mobile phone bills, landline, internet or any other related issue such as purchasing IPOD, Blackberry etc.

    e) Hiring of rooms for constituency use such as supermarket, local council, village halls. If people find out this they may ask is it worth it depending on the amount of turn out to those surgeries.

    f) Any other costs that relate to communication and these are specifically outlined with the cost such as updating sites as www.theyworkforyou.com.

    With the debate that was bantering about last year with MP’s gaining another 10k on their communications allowance is this really necessary and when it comes to whether the public feel they are getting value for money and MP’s actually the allowance is valuable especially when it comes to being informed at voting at a General Election perhaps they are not being as effective as they could as this really reflects with turn out at elections and what they have achieved in between if anything.

    Perhaps there should be a set allowance and politics really is such a dull issue and unless they are a MP in the National Cabinet they make little or no difference to me it is councillors at district and county level that have more influence so the communication allowance perhaps should go to them instead and MP’s just do the job they are elected to do but publish all their costs online.

    Will they use their communications allowance wisely? Some will some wont it depends I think on what accountability each MP has as to whether it works or not.

    Submitted by Mark Crossley, 01 June 2008

  • dangerous space for buddy. yearning to get more from your side :)

    Submitted by Penisa, 28 December 2008

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