RISE TD Paul Murphy has called for the travel and accommodation expenses for TDs to be 'at least halved' during the coronavirus crisis.
Deputies are being paid the unvouched allowance without needing to fob in to Leinster House during the national lockdown.
The amount paid varies depending on how far a Deputy lives away from Leinster House - ranging from €9,000 for those based in Dublin to a maximum of €34,000 for those based furthest away from the capital.
Deputy Murphy told The Pat Kenny Show that those TDs who do attend Leinster House aren't being asked to fob in as usual, given others are staying at home due to the current restrictions.
He said: "[Officials] have put into the freezer the fobbing system for the moment, in the context of the coronavirus.
"Effectively what happens is that TDs and senators are paid a travel and accommodation allowance based on where they live... then they have to fob in a certain amount of days in the year. If they don't do that, then they're forced to repay that amount."
Deputy Murphy said that while any money saved isn't going to enable any major policy measures, he believes it's a matter of principle that the "bloated salary and expenses arrangement" should be "at the very least massively cut back" given the current crisis facing other workers.
Some TDs may still have to pay rent on properties in Dublin - but Deputy Murphy believes that could be managed.
He explained: "It's always been the case we should have a vouched system for these expenses.
"The idea that there's any sort of unvouched expenses in this day and age doesn't make sense.
"In the here-and-now without a vouched system, that points to the need for a significant cut - I would say 50% - in the current expenses that are being paid, that then would allow a case for rent etc... being paid, given the travel costs are definitely not there at the moment."
Separately, the Oireachtas has disputed reports from earlier this week that a small number of TDs had asked about an additional allowance to buy equipment for working from home.
In a statement, the Houses of the Oireachtas said it had not received any requests for such an allowance - adding that no such measure is being considered.
