Parliamentarians will be forced to pay a loading of 25 per cent on any expenses they incorrectly claim, and face more stringent guidelines under new parliamentary expenses rules announced today.
Mr Abbott repaid about $1,700 he spent attending colleagues' weddings
Special Minister of State Michael Ronaldson announced the new rules this morning, saying that while parliamentarians should be given allowances to to carry out their parliamentary duties, the money must be well spent.
"The system should help all parliamentarians to best serve their electors and the Australian community more generally while maintaining public confidence in the integrity and ensuring taxpayers' money is well spent and maintaining that public confidence in the system," he said.
As of January 1 next year, parliamentarians who incorrectly claim expenses will be forced to repay the funds with a 25 per cent loading on the adjusted amount.
"The Government believes that there must be some system in place where there is a penalty attached to an inappropriate usage of entitlements," Senator Ronaldson said.
Other changes include mandatory training for any MP who submits more than one travel claim that requires adjustment within a year, and improvements to the Department of Finance records-management system.
Video: Nick Cater and Simon Banks discuss the changes to entitlement rules. (ABC News)
The Special Minister of State will also have additional powers to name in Parliament any MPs who refuse to cooperate with Department of Finance investigations into allegations of misuse.
Family travel will be overhauled, with the Review Tribunal to review the requirements for family members to be eligible for travel claims.
Under the current guidelines a family member is only required to spend three hours with the member or senator in order to be entitle to a claim.
The Review Tribunal will look at changes to the rule which would mean family member must arrive only 24 hours before the sitting member and leave within 24 hours of their departure.
The allowances for children will also be limited to children under the age of 18, rather than the current age cut-off of 25.
Under the new rules, parliamentarians will sign a stronger declaration when submitting their expenses claims:
"I declare that this travel was undertaken in my capacity as an elected representative and I acknowledge that a financial loading will be applied if subsequent adjustment to this travel claim is required."
Government under pressure to make changes
The Government has been under pressure about questionable expense claims made by several of its MPs.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott repaid about $1,700 he spent attending the weddings of former colleagues Sophie Mirabella and Peter Slipper.
Last month, Mr Abbott told reporters MPs have certain representational roles and he thought the fees were within his entitlements.
Weird politician expenses claims
What MPs can claim on expenses is "ambiguous", so here's a selection of other confusing claims.Also last month, Liberal backbencher Don Randall came under particular scrutiny for spending taxpayers' money on travel to the far-north Queensland town of Cairns with his wife in November on what he said was "electorate business".
A week later, he disclosed that he had taken possession of an investment property in Cairns.
The cost of the airfares and travel allowance was more than $5,000.
Mr Randall said that as the Finance Department were unable to provide him with definitive advice about the claim, he decided to repay the costs to ensure the right thing was done by the taxpayer.
Labor frontbencher Mark Dreyfus was also caught up in the saga and repaid $460 he had claimed while on the ski fields.
Tony Abbott says new rules will be an improved system
Prime Minister Tony Abbott says travel is an important part of a parliamentarian's job but that travel should be reasonably linked to their representative roles.
Mr Abbott was speaking in Perth after delivering a speech to the Western Australia Liberal Party conference earlier today.
Mr Abbott said the changes would help to restore public confidence.
"I think the vast majority of members of Parliament do the right thing," he said.
"The last thing I would want to suggest is that any of my colleagues are consciously doing the wrong thing."
Mr Abbott said the new system is not going to be perfect.
"Occasionally mistakes are made, occasionally people might believe in retrospect things could have been done better and that's always going to be the case," he said.
"In the end I guess there's always going to be arguments at the margin but I think this is an improved system."
At a glance: changes to guidelines
- Stronger claim declaration to be signed by parliamentarians
- A 25 per cent loading on incorrect claims
- Mandatory training for MPs with more than one incorrect claim in a year
- Parliamentarians to be named in parliament if not cooperating with claim investigations
- Additional travel for children limited to children under the age of 18
- Travel allowance connected with the office of second deputy speaker to be removed
- Employment of close relatives not permitted within that senator or member's office
- Remuneration Tribunal to review one night stopover entitlements for Qld, WA and NT
- Remuneration Tribunal to review the requirements for family reunion entitlements
- Review the entitlement for a spouse/partner to travel overseas on delegations.
- Overseas travel to be restricted to no higher than business class for all parliamentarians
- An Implementation Group to be established to assist in implementing changes
