Should I Stay or Should I Go? The Impact of the Expenses Scandal on MPs’ Decisions to Stand Down

Abstract

In total, 149 MPs stood down before the 2010 general election, but to what extent was the expenses scandal a factor in MPs’ decisions to retire or voluntarily exit the House of Commons? This chapter adopts Jacobson and Kernell’s (1983) strategic politicians hypothesis, arguing that, similar to the US banking scandal, British MPs acted strategically, taking advantage of available information in decisions relating to their electoral prospects. The evidence here suggests that the expenses scandal was a factor in MPs’ decisions to stand down. It did not, however, have the impact many suspected given the intense media scrutiny and public outrage following the Daily Telegraph’s initial revelations: more mundane and less controversial factors such as age and seniority played a bigger role.