Over the past month or so a lot has been said about what MEPs get paid, whether we employ relatives and the roles of our staff.

This section of my website sheds some light on how my office is run, and how my accounts are audited.

EMPLOYEES:

I DO NOT employ family members as employees, service providers or paying agents in any capacity.

I employ the following full-time staff:

Dr Catriona Burness – Political Advisor
Yvonne Thorpe – Office Manager
Kirsty Leiper – Press and Campaigns Officer

I also employ Stuart Clark as a Political and Organisational Assistant, who is contracted for 8 hours a week on a flexible basis.

All Labour MEPs currently contribute towards the salary of a Joint Members Assistant (JMA).

The Secretary General of the European Parliamentary Labour Party (EPLP) is the service provider for the JMA. 

You cand download the EPLP Staffing Guildelines here: 

PAYING AGENTS & AUDITORS:

My paying agents and auditors are French Duncan, one of Scotland’s largest independent firms of Chartered Accountants, with 22 partners and over 170 staff across their five Scottish offices. They ensure that all the money I have allotted to me for my staff is spent correctly, redundancy is budgeted for, and national insurance, pensions and tax are paid according to parliament's rules.

French Duncan also ensures that my office expenditure is fully accounted for.

You can download my Auditor’s certificate here:

You can download the EPLP Auditing Guidelines here:

DECLARATION OF INTERESTS:

Every December I am expected to complete a “declaration of financial interests” which is then posted on the European Parliaments website.

I am required to declare anything that has a financial value of more than 100euro (around £70).

You can download my 2008 declaration of financial interests here:

My 2008 declaration of financial interests will be available shortly: