Dear listener,

Oh dear. Do I really have to write for the third week about the expenses claimed by MPs? I do. Because although the £24,222 MPs could claim (and still can in some circumstances) is, thanks to a special law they passed, tax-free, it only achieves that status if it is claimed in accordance with the rules. "Rules!" you ask, "What rules?" Well there are rules. Although MPs exempted themselves from the normal test for expenses to be tax-free which says they have to be incurred "wholly, necessarily, and exclusively" as part of their employment, they still have to be "necessarily" incurred as part of their parliamentary duties. True, omitting "wholly and exclusively" makes the test a lot easier. But did Sir Peter Viggers need to spend £1,645 on a floating bird house to get all his ducks in a row before he went into the House of Commons Chamber? Did Sir Anthony Steen MP need a visit from a forestry expert to help him see the wood for the trees in parliamentary debates? And if Gerald Kaufmann wanted to sweep things under the carpet did he need to spend £1,851 on an antique rug from New York? If these items were not necessary then they were not allowed. And the parliamentary authorities should have refused them. Finally, it is worth saying once more that £24,222 is about the same as the average full time wage in the UK.

I went to an awards ceremony this week. Not for Money Box or for me or even for journalism at all. No it was the Taxation Awards where accountants and tax specialists (there was even a team from HMRC) award each other for various services to taxation. I have to confess to being totally bewildered most of the evening. What did it all mean? Well known company names vied for titles like "Best High Net Worth Team" and "Best Tax Team in a Boutique Firm". Ernst & Young fielded its "Human Capital Team" - who in fact won one award. Another prize was presented by a "Client Solutions Director". But my favourite entrant was the "Ernst & Young Co-shored Compliance Team". Not one of the tax professionals I spoke to could translate that into English. Come to think of it there wasn't a "translating tax law into English" prize. Perhaps there should be. The reason I mention all this – and the reason I was asked along – was that Money Box tax regular John Whiting won the 2009 lifetime achievement award. Now he is someone who can translate tax into English.

*** IN THE BEST RADIO PROGRAMME THIS SATURDAY ***

Oh dear. The government is planning to borrow £220bn  this year to make the books balance. That means persuading wealthy investors around the world that it is worth lending money to HMG. But one of the world's top credit rating agencies has said the UK is slightly less credit-worthy than it was. It is still AAA – the top rating. But instead of AAA with a stable outlook, Standard & Poor's says we are now AAA with a negative outlook. That means the cost of borrowing £220bn will rise, adding a fraction of 1% to the interest. And that could cost us taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds. The only way to avoid it is to cut our national debt. And that means not just tax rises OR spending cuts but tax rises AND spending cuts. We team up an optimist and a pessimist to see what it really means.

Some Money Box listeners are telling us the dollars they have been given at bureaux de change have in fact been forged. What redress do you have if currency issued to you turns out to be fake?

Banks and building societies are accused of profiteering by keeping mortgage rates high despite the historically low Bank rate. The lenders respond.

Nearly three million small shareholders of Lloyds Banking Group have to decide whether to put more money into the bank – or say "no" and perhaps get a cash windfall. It is a complex offer and the paperwork is not that simple. We guide you through.

And are hundreds of thousands of people overpaying on their personal pensions? The annual fee for managing pensions has come down. But people who started their pension many years ago are paying higher charges. Is it worth moving to save the higher costs?

A lot of content there but we will do our best to squeeze it in to Money Box, Saturday at noon (and repeated on Sunday at 9pm). Never miss a show again by subscribing to our podcast. Do that through our website bbc.co.uk/moneybox where you can also listen again, Have Your Say, watch videos, read why we are the Best Radio Programme and find out more about all the items covered this week. In April our web pages and stories hit a new high with viewings now well over half a million in the month.

Best wishes,

Paul

PS Don't forget the programme taster on BBC Breakfast between quarter to nine and nine o'clock. If you miss it, you can watch it on our website.

e-mail Paul Lewis