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Home Office Expenses Rules

Guidance
Expenses
Updated 1 August 2018

Paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’) provides that a police and crime commissioner (PCC) is to be paid authorised allowances. ‘Authorised allowances’ means allowances, in respect of expenses incurred by the commissioner in the exercise of the commissioner’s functions, which are of the kinds and amounts determined by the Secretary of State. A determination under paragraph 3 may make different provision for different cases.

1. Authorised allowances

The purpose of authorised allowances is to reimburse expenses incurred by PCCs in carrying out their duties, not to provide a general gratuity for undertaking the role. Commissioners are paid a salary determined by the Secretary of State on the advice of the senior salaries review board.

The kinds of allowances determined by the Secretary of State for the purposes of paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the 2011 Act are allowances in respect of:

  • travel expenses

  • subsistence expenses

  • exceptional expenses

reasonably incurred by a PCC in the exercise of the commissioner’s functions.

The amounts of such allowances determined by the Secretary of State are set out in the below table:

1.1 Table of PCC authorised allowance amounts

Home Office PCC Expenses Rules

2. Chief executive approval

The commissioner’s chief executive should subject all of the commissioner’s claims for expenses to rigorous verification and auditing.

Any claims for exceptional expenses incurred by the commissioner in the exercise of the commissioner’s functions will require the approval of the commissioner’s chief executive. In considering whether to grant this approval the chief executive shall take into account the following factors:

  • a. whether there are exceptional circumstances warranting additional support

  • b. whether the Commissioner could reasonably have been expected to take any action to avoid the circumstances which gave rise to the expenditure or liability

  • c. whether the Commissioner’s performance of their Commissioner functions will be significantly impaired by a refusal of the claim

3. Publishing allowances

Under paragraph 1(d) of the Schedule to the Elected Local Policing Bodies (Specified Information) Order 2011, PCCs are required to publish the allowances paid to them and to their deputies in respect of expenses incurred by the commissioner or deputy in the exercise of the commissioner’s functions.

 

PCCs and their deputies should publish a breakdown of their expenses including:

  • their name, force area, financial year, month, date, claim reference numbers, expense type (e.g. travel, accommodation), short description, details, amount claimed, amount reimbursed, amount not reimbursed, and the reason why a claim was not reimbursed

  • for travel and subsistence claims: date, place of origin, place of destination, category of journey, class of travel, mileage, length of hotel stay, category of hotel stay

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