MPs' travel perks now secret

MAARTEN HOLL/Dominion Post

LOCKWOOD SMITH: 'It is not a public expense, it is a private matter.'

Parliament's Speaker has introduced new rules preventing public disclosure of individual MPs' spending on tax-payer funded overseas jaunts.

The change mean trips like those taken by Rodney Hide and his partner to Hawaii and through Europe last year are now secret.

Mr Hide admitted at the time that he made a mistake, but Speaker Lockwood Smith today said the matter was private and should never have been made known to the public.

"It is taken out of members' salaries and it is private," Dr Smith said.

"It is not a public expense, it is a private matter."

Mr Hide had paid tens of thousands of dollars in foregone salary over the years he had served as an MP so was entitled to take the trip, Dr Smith said.

Instead of disclosing how much each MP had claimed back on the overseas travel rebate, only a total figure for all MPs would now be released.

Dr Smith said MPs had thousands of dollars deducted from an agreed salary package so that they could claim on their travel.

"It's interfering in their privacy ... and by the time they can use it significantly, they have contributed so much to it."

Publicity about how much they were claiming had stopped them from using it as much, which was detrimental to democracy because overseas travel was good for Parliament.

"It has made Members feel they can't use it, and that's wrong. It's being deducted out of their salaries," Dr Smith said.

The public would be able to see if MPs overall were claiming back reasonable amounts relative to how much was taken from their pay.

The change takes effect immediately.

- © Fairfax NZ News