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A National Post analysis of the numbers released Tuesday shows that MPs spent about 11 per cent more in the final three months of the first half of the year than the first three months of the fiscal year.

The increase is largely attributable to an 18 per cent jump in the salaries all MPs play their employees, both on Parliament Hill and back in their constituencies. Some MPs, particularly first-time MPs, did not hire their full complement of staff until late in the spring or early summer. Spending on employee salaries make up more than 56% of all expenses MPs incurred to run offices on Parliament Hill and in their constituencies.

Because of the way the BOIE publishes the fiscal information, data was not immediately available to be able to identify which MPs were spending more compared to their peers or compared to the previous fiscal quarter.

A National Post analysis of MP expenses for the first half of the calendar year — January 1 to June 30 — found that Opposition Leader Rona Ambrose led all MPs with expenses over that time period of about $320,000. For the first half of this fiscal year — April 1 to Sept. 30 — her total expenses are $257,850.

A preliminary analysis by the National Post for the most recent financial disclosures show that Ambrose’s MP expenses now rank fifth among all MPs for the first half of the current fiscal year. The MPs in the top five are:

David Yurdiga: Fort McMurray–Cold Lake (AB) – Conservative – $292,762.95 Bob Zimmer: Prince George–Peace River–Northern Rockies (BC) – Conservative – $264,966.46 Don Davies: Vancouver Kingsway (BC) – NDP – $263,827.35 Andrew Scheer: Regina–Qu’Appelle (SK) – Conservative – $259,140.41 Rona Ambrose: Sturgeon River–Parkland (AB) – Conservative – $257,850.90

Overall spending by all MPs on travel and per diems was down 17% in the second quarter. The second quarter includes July, August, and September when MPs tend to stay in their ridings because the House of Commons is shut down for summer recess. Overall spending on the operation of Hill and constituency offices — leases, utilities, furniture, repairs, and so on — was up about 8%.