Westminster MPs from the three major parties each get £7,000 per year free stationery and postage — but Ministry of Defence “budget cuts” will soon see the British Forces Post Office (BFPO) facilities closed down which will dramatically increase the costs of sending our soldiers letters and parcels when they are stationed abroad.
Under current Parliamentary expenses rules, stationery can be ordered from the supplier for use in direct connection with a Member’s duties. In the course of a financial year, an MP is entitled to be supplied free of charge with original House of Commons stationery up to the value of £7,000. This includes the cost of the stationery itself and postage on pre-paid envelopes. MPs may also purchase original House stationery (but not pre-paid envelopes) using their Incidental Expenses Provision or Communications Allowance.
Our Armed Forces have however been advised that the BFPO facilities in mainland Europe will be shut from September 2010.
Personnel and their families deployed in Europe currently enjoy the same postal rates as the UK. Withdrawal of this long established tradition will further erode personnel’s ability to communicate with their families in the UK and safe receipt of parcels, etc. through a secure network.
It also means soldiers’ families will have to pay the full rate to send parcels and letters overseas.
In April, the Government quietly announced the closure of more than one in seven military post offices to save £1.7 million. Some 11 mail centres across mainland Europe, including in Brussels, Brunssum, Ramstein, Stavanger, Karup, Naples, Rome, Milan, Lisbon and Valencia, are set for closure.
Under current Parliamentary expenses rules, stationery can be ordered from the supplier for use in direct connection with a Member’s duties. In the course of a financial year, an MP is entitled to be supplied free of charge with original House of Commons stationery up to the value of £7,000. This includes the cost of the stationery itself and postage on pre-paid envelopes. MPs may also purchase original House stationery (but not pre-paid envelopes) using their Incidental Expenses Provision or Communications Allowance.
Our Armed Forces have however been advised that the BFPO facilities in mainland Europe will be shut from September 2010.
Personnel and their families deployed in Europe currently enjoy the same postal rates as the UK. Withdrawal of this long established tradition will further erode personnel’s ability to communicate with their families in the UK and safe receipt of parcels, etc. through a secure network.
It also means soldiers’ families will have to pay the full rate to send parcels and letters overseas.
In April, the Government quietly announced the closure of more than one in seven military post offices to save £1.7 million. Some 11 mail centres across mainland Europe, including in Brussels, Brunssum, Ramstein, Stavanger, Karup, Naples, Rome, Milan, Lisbon and Valencia, are set for closure.
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