A Necessary Evil

What about Green Hotel

2009-04-09T08:51:00.000+01:00

See the CNN Video

http://www.hsmaieconnect.org/news/154000320/4040817.html

Plastic pillows? Potato cutlery? CNN's Ayesha Durgahee takes a look at what hotels are doing to reduce their impact on the environment.

Guessing the Costs of IFRS Conversion

2009-03-31T16:22:00.001+01:00

U.S. companies believe they will spend more than European ones did to adopt the global rules, according to an Accenture survey.

Sarah Johnson - CFO.com | US

March 30, 2009

U.S. executives expect to pay more than their European counterparts did to convert to International Financial Reporting Standards. Depending on company size, they estimate they'll spend between 0.1% and 0.7% of annual revenue to move from U.S. GAAP to the global rules, an endeavor publicly traded companies in Europe undertook four years ago at an average cost of 0.05% of revenue.

http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13399306

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith submitted expenses claim for adult films watched by husband

2009-03-30T08:51:00.001+01:00

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/03/29/home-secretary-jacqui-smith-submitted-expenses-claim-for-adult-films-watched-by-husband-115875-21237468/

By Mirror.co.uk 29/03/2009

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith was said to be "mortified" today after she was forced to offer a humiliating apology for an expenses claim which included adult films watched by her husband.

Ms Smith said she "mistakenly" submitted an expenses claim which included five pay-per-view films, including two adult movies which were viewed at her family home in her Redditch constituency.

A friend said the Home Secretary knew there was "no excuse" for the error but added: "To say she's angry with her husband is an understatement.

"Jacqui was not there when these films were watched.

"She's furious and mortified."

Ms Smith said in a statement: "I am sorry that in claiming for my internet connection, I mistakenly claimed for a television package alongside it.

"As soon as the matter was brought to my attention, I took immediate steps to contact the relevant parliamentary authorities and rectify the situation.

"All money claimed for the television package will be paid back in full."

But the Home Secretary was said to be "getting on with her job" today despite her embarrassment.

Ms Smith's husband, Richard Timney, apologised today for causing her embarrassment, saying: "I am really sorry for any embarrassment I have caused Jacqui.

"I can fully understand why people might be angry and offended by this.

"Quite obviously a claim should never have been made for these films, and as you know that money is being paid back."

The £67 Virgin Media bill was submitted last June as part of Ms Smith's expenses.

It included two 18-rated features, each costing £5, which were viewed on April 1 and April 6 last year.

The bill also included two viewings of the film Ocean's 13 - at £3.75 each - and an additional £3.50 to watch the film Surf's Up.

News of the claim is an embarrassment to Ms Smith who last month faced criticism for claiming taxpayer-funded allowances for her family home while living with her sister in London.

Ms Smith said she had "fully abided" by the rules by designating her sister's house as her "main" residence, allowing her to claim payments on the Redditch constituency home she shares with her husband and children.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, John Lyon, accepted a complaint about Ms Smith's claims and has called on her to explain the £116,000 which she has claimed since becoming an MP.

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Today's apology came as Labour left-winger Harry Cohen, who was said to have claimed more than £300,000 in second home allowances on his house in the capital, insisted that he had done nothing wrong as it was "part of my salary".

Mr Cohen said that MPs had been told "Go out boys and spend it" when the present system was introduced under Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.

A Sunday newspaper reported that the MP listed a single-bedroom schoolhouse in Colchester, Essex, and a caravan on nearby Mersea Island as his main home.

The paper said that it meant that over the past five years he was able to claim the maximum allowance of £104,701 on his constituency home 70 miles away in Leyton and Wanstead, east London.

It calculated that since 1990, he had received a total of £310,714 in allowances.

Mr Cohen was reported as saying that the arrangement had been cleared with the House of Commons authorities.

He said that the former Conservative minister John Moore had told MPs "Go out boys and spend it" when he introduced a big uprating of the allowance in the 1980s to head off a pay revolt by backbench Tories.

Mr Cohen said that he had taken full advantage of the arrangement ever since.

"That is exactly what John Moore said on behalf of Mrs Thatcher to her Tory MPs. That makes it part of my salary," he said.

"It really is part of my salary in all but name. That is what it exists for."

Mr Cohen said the Colchester property was his "family home".

He said that there was no reason under the Commons rules why London MPs should not live outside the capital and have a second home in their constituency.

"It is the legitimate costs of having a constituency home to do my job. We don't have a system where people are required to live in their constituency," he said.

"I am doing nothing wrong whatsoever. I am using it for parliamentary purposes. It is a legitimate and proper use of it."

Nevertheless the latest disclosure is likely to fuel demands for a complete overhaul of the system of MPs' expenses and allowances.

Gordon Brown last week tried to head off the growing public anger by asking the Committee on Standards in Public Life to carry out a review of the whole system.

It followed the disclosure that another Greater London MP, Immigration Minister Tony McNulty, was claiming the allowance on the home where his parents live in his Harrow constituency, even though he lived only a few miles away in Hammersmith.

However with the committee not planning to report until after the next general election, the latest row may lead to fresh demands for an immediate crackdown.

Expense talk on Twitter

2009-03-26T14:56:00.001Z

gfmorris ACCOUNTING! FIGURE OUT MY EXPENSE REPORT DAMMIT! DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Thursday, 26 March 2009, 3:34 pm

mcottmeyer Rainy day in Suwanee, GA. Working my way through my todo list then need to do my expense report. I hate expense reports!

Thursday, 26 March 2009, 2:15 pm

organizedaily Expense report to do? Carry a clear pouch for expenses in your car to gather the receipts every day. Get them done with a reward!

Thursday, 26 March 2009, 1:27 pm

Live from Twitter

2009-03-25T09:14:00.001Z

mailien There's nothing scarier than doing an expense report after living out of hotels for 5 weeks... aahhhh the receipts!!

Wednesday, 25 March 2009 schaefjl is working on his expense report.

marvalous08 is doing my expense report and hating every minute of it. Ugh!

Wednesday, 25 March 2009

tiger_girl biting the bullet and doing my expense report, 1 month late.

Wednesday, 25 March 2009

What people say about Expense Reports on Twitter

2009-03-19T09:15:00.001Z

I just went on a Cancun Vacation and it turned out to be a business expense b/c I signed up a new person in my business!!!

Wednesday, 18 March 2009, 6:13 pm

Another month....another expense report...

Wednesday, 18 March 2009, 5:11 pm

Expense reports...grrr. Distractions wanted!

Wednesday, 18 March 2009, 4:06 pm -

Back from Kingston, with an expense report for $25? Really.$25 to get to Kingston? When you get reimbursed .55 cent a mile it is.

Wednesday, 18 March 2009, 5:01 pm

One bad part of returning from trips = expense reports

Wednesday, 18 March 2009, 2:19 pm

Maybe it's time for a new iMac or MacBook. It wouldn't help my program attendance problem, but maybe I could claim it as a business expense?

Tuesday, 17 March 2009, 9:40 pm

I can't believe it, my dad justified the amazon kindle as a business expense. The un-boxing begins.

Tuesday, 17 March 2009, 10:15 pm

TRIPADVISOR RELEASES A FLURRY OF INTERESTING TRAVEL STATS AND FACTS

2009-03-18T15:24:00.001Z

17 March, 2009

TripAdvisor announced its airline and airports survey of more than 1,500 U.S. respondents. Fifty-one percent of travelers plan to fly between one to four times in the next 12 months, and 45 percent will fly five times or more in the coming year.

Checked bags are the most annoying airline fee, according to 54 percent of U.S. respondents. Sixty percent of travelers said they factor checked fees into their overall airline ticket price. However, 36 percent have been surprised by the cost of checked baggage fees upon arrival at the airport. Nineteen percent said they always carry-on a bag to avoid additional fees, while 39 percent often do.

Fifty-three percent of respondents said they have tried to swap their airline seat for a better one after boarding a flight. Thirty-one percent of travelers get frustrated when another in-flight passenger asks them to switch seats with their travel companion. Eighty-five percent have been asked to switch seats in the past.

When asked about their seating preference, 53 percent of travelers prefer the aisle, while 42 percent would rather have a window seat. Forty percent of travelers said when selecting their seat, they request the emergency exit row.

Sixty-five percent of travelers are aware that flying first or business class allows them to avoid most airline fees. Sixty percent have tasted the high life and flown first class, 43 percent have bumped up to business class and 22 percent have upgraded to a premium seat outside first or business class. When it comes to paying for higher class seats, 63 percent said they received a free upgrade from the airline. The favorite thing about flying in a premium class is the bigger seat, according to 64 percent of travelers.

Only six percent of travelers said they purchase food on a flight. Fifty percent said they typically satisfy their hunger at the airport, and 37 percent bring food from home.

When asked what factors they would not be willing to endure for a significantly cheaper flight, 75 percent of U.S. respondents pooh-poohed the idea of coin-operated restrooms on planes.

Travelers have experienced some unfortunate behavior from their seatmates on flights, below are the lowlights:

44% have experienced loud snoring

25% have experienced obvious intoxication

19% have experienced excessive flatulence

11% have experienced couples that cannot keep their hands off one another

9% have experienced vomiting

Travelers are willing to splurge for a more expensive flight for the following top three factors: Convenient departure/arrival times (69 percent), non-stop flights (67 percent), and good experiences with the airline in the past (44 percent.)

"It's apparent that travelers are frustrated about checked bag charges and are looking for more clarity when it comes to domestic airline fees," said Michele Perry, vice president of global communications for TripAdvisor. "By using TripAdvisor's new flight search and fees estimator, travelers get the whole picture on the cost of a flight and can take advantage of some excellent flight deals to stretch their vacation dollars farther."

2008-09-29T14:14:00.004+01:00

Read the full Comic about expenses

See how the pain of travel expenses and expense claims can be simplified by KDS Express.

Wasting time!

2008-06-27T11:03:00.002+01:00

Too much complicated and time consuming...

By Sangita Bajpayee

I hate it!

2008-06-27T11:02:00.001+01:00

I always hate it as I see it as wasting my time...

By Olivier Labat

SAP is difficult to use!

2008-06-10T16:06:00.001+01:00

My company changed systems to SAP about 18 months ago. It was not smooth and still difficult to use. My three main gripes are:

1. I need to complete an expense report just infrequently enough to forget all the "tricks" needed to navigate the system.

2. My manager's rules regarding expense reports seem to vary from trip to trip and between my reports and hers.

3. For a complex system, there seem to be too many loopholes that are taken advantage of by others. Sort of like cheating on your taxes. The more you cheat the more everyone else has to pay. And the rules get more and more complicated. In a professional company, let's just be honest.

By Torrey Martin

I really hate it!

2008-06-10T16:05:00.000+01:00

I really hate it, I have being travel for the last then years and nothing have upset me the most than my expense reports, not even losing my luggage or long airplane delays

By Fidel Hernandez

The importance of financial controller

2008-06-09T16:01:00.002+01:00

It depend of the financial controller.
If he/she is a normal person, it's OK, but if it's a fussy person... you could have much problems with him/her.

by Alberto Mateos