Speaker's travel expenses (2018)
Request
Please could I be supplied with details of trips by the Speaker that were funded by the Inter-Parliamentary Union or Commonwealth Parliamentary Association over the past five years.
Could this information include the dates, where the Speaker stayed, and the costs if available.
Response
Details of any trips taken by the Speaker - including dates, accommodation and costs where possible – that were funded by:
a) the Inter-Parliamentary Union
This information is held by the House of Commons. The Speaker has not undertaken any travel in the last 5 years funded directly by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) which is the global body of national parliaments based in Geneva. The Speaker’s attendance at the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament held in New York at UN Headquarters from 31 August to 2 September 2015 was funded by the British Group of the IPU (BGIPU) which is a standalone association of UK parliamentarians responsible for British involvement in the IPU.
Detailed information about the event.
Specific information about the costs incurred by BGIPU in relation to the Speaker’s attendance is not held by the House of Commons. For further information, you may wish to direct your enquiry to the BGIPU. However, please note that this organisation is not a public authority in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and therefore have no obligation to respond.
b) the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association
This information is held by the House of Commons. The Speaker has not undertaken any travel in the last 5 years that was funded by CPA UK and/or the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (international).