Sir Lindsay Hoyle‘s entourage of staff has almost doubled in just two years, it can be revealed.
Details of the Commons Speaker’s staffing bill, obtained by the Mail, reveal it has ballooned to more than £1 million a year. This was up from £550,000 at the beginning of 2023.
And the number of those employed by his office jumped from 12 to 21 in that period, as he looks to expand his centuries-old job into a full-blown diplomatic role.
Meanwhile, separate disclosures made under the Freedom of Information Act reveal at least £55,000 was splurged refurbishing the four bathrooms and kitchen in his grace-and-favour Commons flat.
One source said the cost soared after three bathrooms were decked out in marble, which his office did not deny.
The overhaul was part of a lavish £7million refurbishment of Speaker’s House, a grand five-storey building in the heart of the Parliamentary estate which offers sweeping views over the Thames.
It comes amid growing questions about the scale of Sir Lindsay’s travel expenses, which have surged past £300,000 since he became Speaker in 2019. He has taken his wife on several trips along with up to four staff.
On his latest jaunt to Malaysia, over February half-term, he spent more than £25,000 on business class flights, hotels and restaurants for him and staff.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle ‘s entourage of staff has almost doubled in just two years
On his latest jaunt to Malaysia, over February half-term, he spent more than £25,000 on business class flights, hotels and restaurants for him and staff
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘The Speaker seems to be having a jolly old time racking up the spending with a growing posse of staff adding to the soaring travel costs. But this surging expenditure is all paid for by taxpayers struggling with “awful April” as bills and taxes continue to climb.
‘That includes his constituents in Chorley. Lindsay Hoyle should look at himself in one of his many grand mirrors and ask whether he’s really showing taxpayers and their cash the respect it deserves.’
Details of the staffing bill show that, up until February this year (March 2025 data is not available yet), there were 19 staff employed in the Speaker’s Office at a cost of £905,148. A further two apprentices, working in other areas on the estate, were also on the payroll at a cost of £103,880.
By comparison, the headcount for March 2023 was 12 employees at a cost of £553,063.
But the number of roles created has grown as the Speaker’s travel bills have, and cover the areas of ‘parliamentary affairs and chamber affairs’, ‘private office and correspondence’, ‘special projects and events’, ‘visits and protocol’ and the ‘Speaker’s apprenticeship academy’.
Last month the Mail revealed how Sir Lindsay has splurged more than £300,000 on 25 foreign jaunts since becoming Speaker in 2019.
A spokesman for the Speaker’s Office said: ‘As would be expected, a range of staff employed by the House Administration support the functioning of the Speaker’s Office, including the Speaker’s parliamentary and chamber duties, the private office, special projects and visits and protocol.’
