Independant MP Expenses Body

[MoggyTech]

Just read on the news, the new 'job for the boys' body that will study MP expenses, is going to cost 6.5 million pounds per annum to run. So 5 times the amount the greedy little feckers were fiddling in the first place. I cannot believe the incompetence of this countries government. Excuse me while I go and shoot them all.

[cheezemonkhai]

I think they should prosecute all of the house flippers for fraud and seize their assets under the proceeds of crimes legislation they put in for SOCA.

[Babs]

We need a new Guy Fawkes to be honest... completely wipe the slate clean!

[Hannibal]

We have about 5x more MP's than we need. 80% cull. Nice little cost saving.

As for expenses, double the salary and give zero expenses. Zero admin cost.

JD.

[Babs]

What salary do MP's get now?

[ultra_joel88]

What salary do MP's get now?

Around £65k.

Which seems a lot, but a lot of MPs, contrary to belief, do work bloody hard and will reguarly put in 16 hour days and work saturdays.

You also dont get much more accountable than an MP.

Personally, I think:

2nd home allowance should be scrapped, they should provide a small 1 bedroom apartment for every MP outside of London in a communal building.

Food, decorating etc allowance should be scrapped.

Travelling expenses should be kept along wth admin expenditure - however this should be limited to "economy" travel on trains and planes.

Should not be allowed to employ family members

Number of MPs should be cut by about 10-20% i.e. 60-120 members.

Edited 11 February, 2010 by ultra_joel88

[cheezemonkhai]

Around £65k.

Which seems a lot, but a lot of MPs, contrary to belief, do work bloody hard and will reguarly put in 16 hour days and work saturdays.

You also dont get much more accountable than an MP.

Personally, I think:

2nd home allowance should be scrapped, they should provide a small 1 bedroom apartment for every MP outside of London in a communal building.

Food, decorating etc allowance should be scrapped.

Travelling expenses should be kept along wth admin expenditure - however this should be limited to "economy" travel on trains and planes.

Should not be allowed to employ family members

Number of MPs should be cut by about 10-20% i.e. 60-120 members.

Grace and Favour accommodation went away when the tax payer b*tched that it was too expensive.

[Babs]

I work hard, as do most people in the country. And we do it for far less than £65,000 a year!

That's a massive amount of money for a sallary.

I thought they might be on £15,000 maybe, hence all this expenses nonsense. But Sixty-five grand!?

F*ck 'em - they get enough! No expenses, and reduce the amount of these 'tards.

[KenONeill]

Around £65k.

Which seems a lot, but a lot of MPs, contrary to belief, do work bloody hard and will reguarly put in 16 hour days and work saturdays.

OTOH, can you actually name another job that requires no qualifications, no experience, no fixed hours of work, and pays nearly 3 times national average wages?

[ap0gee1978]

2nd home allowance should be scrapped, they should provide a small 1 bedroom apartment for every MP outside of London in a communal building.

I think there's a semi-serious suggestion that part of the Olympic Village could be converted into accomodation for our honourable members. After the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, a lot of the athletes' accomodation was turned into student digs after all - so I don't see why not...

[robmawer]

OTOH, can you actually name another job that requires no qualifications, no experience, no fixed hours of work, and pays nearly 3 times national average wages?

Self-employed painter/decorator.

Rob.

[MoggyTech]

I think there's a semi-serious suggestion that part of the Olympic Village could be converted into accomodation for our honourable members. After the Commonwealth Games in Manchester, a lot of the athletes' accomodation was turned into student digs after all - so I don't see why not...

Hopefully the deep end of the swimming pool and still full of water. People responding to this post have seen the obvious answer. Flat salary and no expenses, removes the admin which will now cost 6.5 million quid a year. Politics has always been about jobs for the boys. The money this lot waste is unbelievable.

I'm with Babs, loads of gunpowder under parliament and blow them all to Hell were they belong.

[ultra_joel88]

Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.

- Winston Churchill.

[Interphase]

I'm surprised the story about expenses in the Lords hasn't been in the media more. They were running the same scam, and when discovered rewrote the rules to say a main home is one you stay in for one day a month, and family members can live there in the meantime. It's not even as if they have a constituency they need to travel from.

[KenONeill]

I'm surprised the story about expenses in the Lords hasn't been in the media more. They were running the same scam, and when discovered rewrote the rules to say a main home is one you stay in for one day a month, and family members can live there in the meantime. It's not even as if they have a constituency they need to travel from.

On the positive side, they apear to be "smart and corrupt", rather than "stupid, corrupt and arrogant".

[cheezemonkhai]

Indeed it's the arrogance of MP's that gets me, especially the fact that I believe it was alleged that the new speaker was involved in home flipping, which is why he dropped the investigation into the alleged home flipping.

Personally I think, give them £85'000 a year, with an inflation based pay rise to be awarded (or not) annually based on the back of an independent body.

Now to get this £85k a year, they would have to give up their expenses and also have a reduction in the number of MP's of 25-30%.

This would remove the overheads of the expenses system and it's administration and also negate the net cost increase of the MP's salary to that the base salary cost is the same.

[Interphase]

Culling that many MPs would mean a serious restructure of wards, which would make the changeover complex and might have serious implications for the amount of time available to each constituent.

[cheezemonkhai]

Culling that many MPs would mean a serious restructure of wards, which would make the changeover complex and might have serious implications for the amount of time available to each constituent.

Well I don't know, if they were not swindling the system, then they might have more time for those they are supposed to represent.

[Irvtheswerv]

My MP has been charged with False accounting, has had the Labour party whip withdrawn, and still refuses to resign.

His replacement as labour party candidate has been selected from an all female shortlist and claims to be a 27 yr old solicitor. For a normal person this means 3 yrs at uni, 2 yrs at law school, 2 years as articled clerk giving at best 2 years work experience as a solicitor - WORKING FOR HER DAD's firm.

In fact when you piece together her "work experience" from what little is available she gave up work last year to concentrate on politics ending her 1 year career as a solicitor (because she is a councillor for Manchester council which apparently means you can screw the expenses system enough to not have to work). Incidentally her father is mayor of Manchester and a high ranking labour party member. Chosen on merit? I don't think so.

Nothing will change, it's just a load more people p*ssing in the same pot whilst mug tax payers foot the bill.

[VWD]

My MP has been charged with False accounting, has had the Labour party whip withdrawn, and still refuses to resign.

His replacement as labour party candidate has been selected from an all female shortlist and claims to be a 27 yr old solicitor

Welcome to the Labia wishlist . To date , (according to Labour policies,) we do not have enough FEMALE Labour MPs . So to rectify this - no retirnig male MP can be replaced with another male . Don't matter if the best candidate is male - the replacement MUST BE FEMALE .

Imagine an agency recruiting for a job , stating that only female candidates would be considered - ................................................................................................

Welcome to NU LABIA BRITON ,headed by Harriot Harperson and Dykes unlimited .

It's coming to a constituency near you - like it has in mine - the voting comittee on all the Labout party councils were told that localy only a female candidate would be chosen ( irrespective of ability ) - never mind - Dvid Cameron's job has been made thast little bit easier ,by kami-kazi infighting inside the labia party .

Then we've got postal /proxy voting - shown up as being little short of the antics of some third world election scam .

Edited 19 February, 2010 by VWD

[Ootohere]

Hopefully after all the Expenses Scandals of recent years & the reorganisation of the Westminster Parliaments Expenses Systems there is a proper set up to investigate MP's that are still at it and robbing from the public purse for their benefit and that of their friends.

Or just those being accused of possibly being at it and snouters.

 

As the system is, Innocent always until proved otherwise or totally exonerated.

http://telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/17/snp-love-triangle-scandal-nicola-sturgeon-makes-feelings-clear-i

Edited 18 May, 2016 by GoneOffSKi

[gadgetman]

But no one bats a eyelid at the MEP claims. Only the MPs.

And MP is less than £100k/year.

An MEP costs us £1.5m/year - and they get paid by the EU as well!!!

No wonder Farage is always near a pub with his cigars!

Why is no one outraged by MEP expenses/costs?

[Ootohere]

At least Stewart Hosie MP resigns as Deputy Leader of the SNP is not seeking re-election as Deputy Leader.

Family, health, for the good of constituency etc etc.

If only he was not in the SNP he could resign as a MP to spend more time with his family (excluding the wife.)

and then become a Peer and spend even more time in London and get £300 a day plus in expenses.

 

Obviously nothing will be wrong with his Expenses Claims or any other behaviour.

Hopefully the public can see the Expenses claimed for previously and rejected or those expenses put on the Westminster Credit Card & that had to be repaid, obviously just an administration error from someone that employs 11 of a staff to assist in his duties as a Constituency MP.

 

(lets forget the 1 close aide to Stewart Hosie MP that is currently suspended on full pay for the past 4 months, he is innocent until found otherwise and that is still under investigation on both incidents.)

Edited 22 May, 2016 by GoneOffSKi