WESTMINSTER MPs have spent hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayer cash on firms with current or past party links, The Sunday National can reveal.
An analysis of data from the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) – the body responsible for regulating MPs’ staffing and business costs – shows that more than a dozen companies run by former or current councillors, party staffers, parliamentary aides or political candidates have received nearly £488,781 through MPs’ expense budgets since the General Election.
The spending comes on top of MPs’ existing staffing budgets, which already run into six figures annually.
The firms involved span public relations agencies, consultancy businesses, website designers and training providers.
While each has some form of current or past party or MP link, there is no suggestion of wrongdoing or that any rules have been breached.
MPs are prohibited from paying “connected parties” such as family members or businesses they own. But current regulations don’t prevent spending on firms run by political allies, former colleagues or donors.
However, critics have argued that reform is needed. While parliamentary rules state that expenses must be used strictly for “parliamentary functions” and not for electoral purposes, there are concerns about oversight and whether the system is robust enough to prevent blurred lines between public duties and political promotion.
Shimeon Lee, policy analyst at the TaxPayers' Alliance – which campaigns for government transparency and lower spending – also said it risks “reinforcing the perception that Westminster operates as a revolving door”.
He added: "At a time when taxes are at record highs, taxpayers deserve full transparency over who is being paid, what they are doing and whether it represents value for money.
"MPs must be able to demonstrate that contracts are awarded on merit, not personal or party connections.”
Meanwhile, Jo Maugham, the executive director at the Good Law Project, said that MPs are “focusing on style over substance” – hitting out at the taxpayer cash expensed on PR firms in particular.
He added: “Public money should be spent on working for the public, not political PR. It’s time for parliament to tighten the rules on expenses and stop politicians spending taxpayers’ money hiring cronies to improve their chances at the next election.”
Below are the firms that have received funds from MP expenses in the 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 tax year which have current or former links to Westminster parties or MPs.
The number and amount may be larger as IPSA data often doesn’t reveal the name of the supplier.
Causeway Creative – £214,274
Marketing firm Causeway Creative was incorporated by Labour councillor Tom Jennings just days after the General Election, which saw a bumper 411 Labour MPs elected.
Since then, records show that at least £214,274 of fees to the firm have been put on expenses by Labour MPs – largely for “comms and media” work and “training”, according to IPSA data.
This includes Scottish Labour MP Zubir Ahmed, who has spent £15,082 with the firm.
Causeway Creative also creates and manages bespoke websites, with 6 Labour MPs spending £4800 each with the firm for that purpose.
The in-house Labour Party website creation service, meanwhile, costs just £250 a year. Causeway Creative have been approached for comment.
Chartwell Advisory – £6120
Chartwell Advisory has pocketed £6120 from two Tory MPs since the General Election. The research and advisory firm was founded in July 2024 by Iain Carter – a former Tory HQ employee and a special adviser to various UK Government departments while the Conservatives were in power, including for Liz Truss when she was prime minister.
Justin Tomlinson Ltd. – £8091.38
After Justin Tomlinson, former Tory MP for North Swindon, lost his seat in the 2024 General Election, he started Justin Tomlinson Ltd – which provides marketing and print services to commercial firms (via JT Print) as well as Tory politicians (via Conservative Print).
He previously ran a printing and marketing firm between 2000 and 2010, which was sold when elected.
Since April 2024, the former energy minister under prime minister Rishi Sunak has received £8091.38 from the expenses of his former Tory colleagues.
That includes a hefty £5538 from Tory MP and chairman Kevin Hollinrake (below) in January this year for his “newsletter”.
Tomlinson told The Sunday National: “With Conservative Print we compete with many other businesses including the official party supplier Paragon. We continue to grow as we won’t be beaten on price, speed or service. Whilst the majority of the work is direct with associations, any colleagues who place an order through IPSA, rightly must have it approved, ensuring it is free of party politics. We are proud to continue to save both colleagues and therefore the tax-payer money.”
Buttermountain – £16,994.75
Website design firm Buttermountain was, according to a 2014 report in The Times, owned by former Conservative aide and councillor Jonathan Mole. The article highlighted the firm's role in building and managing websites for a number of Tory MPs.
It is unclear whether Mole remains involved with the company. However, Buttermountain has continued to receive payments from MPs' expenses, with Conservative MPs claiming a total of £16,994.75 for its services since April 2024.
Buttermountain have been approached for comment.
BB Partner Advisory – £9600
PR firm BB Partner Advisory received £9600 from a Labour MP since April 2024 and was founded by Hannah Barlow, who served as a Labour councillor in London between 2014 and 2017.
The firm has been approached for comment.
Rise Strategies – £3750
Consultancy firm Rise Strategies – which is run by long-time Labour staffer and former councillor and parliamentary candidate Natasa Pantelic – received £3750 from Labour MP Diana Johnson in 2025.
The firm has been approached for comment.
Daffodil PR – £6850
Daffodil PR – founded by Sharon Grant and daughter Livvi Grant, a current staffer for Lib Dem MP Adam Dance according to LinkedIn – has benefitted from £6850 in MP expenses since April 2024.
The firm has been approached for comment.
Seifert Consulting – £11,417
Since being elected, Labour MP for Rugby John Slinger has spent £11,417 with Seifert Consulting – a PR firm run by Ivan Seifert, his former colleague whilst working at the Dubai-headquartered PR firm Consulum according to LinkedIn.
Seifert Consulting and the Labour Party (response at end of article) have been approached for comment.
Ray Sadri Associates – £9277.70
The PR firm of Ray Sadri-Casely – former journalist and ex-Tory head of press at the London Assembly – benefitted from £9277.70 since April 2024 from several former Tory MPs.
The firm has been approached for comment.
Canon Row Ltd. - £38,118
Over a dozen Tory MPs have spent £38,118 with Canon Row Ltd. since April 2024 – which provides “clerical and administrative assistance” in both local government and Westminster, including for All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs). It is run by Nigel Knapton, the Tory councillor for Easingwold.
The firm has been approached for comment.
Bluetree Website Services – £15,510
Tory MPs have expensed £15,510 with Bluetree Website Services.
Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) denied Bluetree is wholly owned by the party to The Guardian in 2024 and said it is a separate organisation, but has reportedly refused to deny the party receives income from the company – saying it has “commercial arrangements with CCHQ”.
The Sunday National spoke with a spokesperson for the firm who said they are a “completely separate organisation from the Conservative Party”.
They added: “Nobody working here has ever been an employee of CCHQ. While Bluetree is a preferred supplier to CCHQ and necessarily integrates with its tools and resources, it cannot be considered an in-house agency. We host the websites of the majority of Conservative MPs and MSPs, but this is because we have spent years improving our product and service and pride ourselves on being industry leaders who care deeply about democracy, rather than profit.
“In terms of IPSA, it is up to individual MPs to decide how to fund any resources they use, including websites, and we have gone to great lengths to ensure that Bluetree is fully-compliant with IPSA rules, because that’s the right thing to do. For example, MPs who claim the cost of websites through expenses are not permitted to use them for political campaigning. They can still use the publishing platform for constituent engagement the same as everyone else, and what that means in practice is consistency and better value for money for everyone.”
Parli-training – £129,870.30
Parli-training, a firm offering training courses for workers in public affairs, has received £129,870 from MPs from almost every party including Labour.
Its founder, Mendora Ogbogbo, stood as a Labour candidate in a local London election in 2014 and attempted to be a Labour Westminster candidate twice during the 2010s.
A spokesperson for the company stressed to The Sunday National that Parli-Training is an independent training provider.
“We have delivered professional development courses for over 24 years to parliamentary staff, charities, public bodies, trade associations, corporates and international organisations.
“We began providing training for MPs’ staff in March 2010 and now offer around 40 courses for MPs’ offices, covering casework, office skills, parliamentary procedure, communications, social media and public policy.”
They added: “Our training is strictly professional, vocational and educational. It is delivered on a cross-party basis and is open to MPs’ staff from all parties, as well as non-political organisations. Any past personal political activity by an individual associated with the company has no bearing on the services we provide, our course content, or the clients we work with.
“We fully support transparency and proper scrutiny of public expenditure. All bookings made by MPs’ offices are made independently by those offices and are subject to the relevant IPSA rules and approval processes.
“We do not provide campaigning services, party-political consultancy or election-related support through IPSA-funded bookings. Our work with parliamentary offices focuses solely on professional training and skills development to help staff support constituents, manage casework and understand Parliament more effectively.”
Millbank – £89,229
PR Firm Millbank has benefited from hundreds of thousands of pounds in taxpayer cash from MPs, including £89,229 since April 2024. It was founded by former Tory councillor Stuart Graham, who also previously worked as a chief of staff to a Tory MP.
According to Millbank’s website, the firm also counts clients from numerous other public sector clients – ranging from the NHS to the police.
A spokesperson for the company said: “Millbank is a non-partisan business providing digital public engagement services to clients across the political spectrum, as well as to central and regional government. Our client base and advisory board include individuals from across the political divide, and those with no political affiliation, as is quite evident from our website.
“Our work helps elected representatives communicate more effectively with their constituents and encourages greater public engagement with the democratic process. We take considerable care to ensure that our services are not used for party-political purposes or to support any particular political party.
“All work undertaken for Members of Parliament is commissioned directly by the relevant parliamentary office and paid in accordance with IPSA rules and processes, with expenditure publicly declared through IPSA's transparency regime. Our service has delivered substantial savings to taxpayers over many years, reducing the cost of communications support to MPs' offices by around 79% compared with employing a full-time senior communications manager.
“Unlike many parliamentary offices, which directly employ staff with previous campaign or party-political backgrounds, Millbank provides professional external services on a non-partisan basis and works with clients regardless of political affiliation. Over the years we have provided support to individuals with all political leanings. Any suggestion that Millbank operates on a partisan basis would therefore be completely incorrect.”
The Tory Party have been approached for comment.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “MPs of all political parties use a number of different resources to support their offices as they work to support and communicate with their constituents. The independent MPs’ watchdog, IPSA, have clear rules governing MPs’ expenses and these rules have been followed.”
