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MPs would be mad to try and get a £15,000 pay rise
Posted by Mark Reckons
Thursday, 5th November 2009
This morning's Telegraph reports that senior MPs are lobbying for a £15,000 pay rise for MPs. They seem to think that in the wake of the Kelly report on expenses, they should be compensated for the loss/reduction of some of their perks with a salary increase.
They clearly do not get it. The public are disgusted with the behaviour of some MPs regarding expenses and the mood is such that any attempt to try and push through a substantial salary increase like this will go down like the proverbial cup of cold sick.
There also seems to be a suggestion (from Sir Stuart Bell MP, pictured) a member of the Estimates Committee) that expenses should be merged with salary:
"...so that in the longer term we can marry pay structures with allowances in such a way that the dreadful allowance system is abolished for all time.
I do think we should look at pay in relation to allowances and put ourselves in a situation where MPs will live on their pay and not have to claim any allowances at all, other than travel."
I don't really understand how this can work. Different MPs live different distances from London resulting in varying degrees of travel necessitated and also have wildly different family sizes and hence accommodation needs. How could one set salary level for all MPs work in this context?
It seems that MPs have undergone a collective nervous breakdown when it comes to this subject. They seem to be so traumatised by the expenses scandal that they are no longer looking at the subject rationally. I can how Bell's suggestion might superficially seem to get around the problem but it is very flawed and smacks of a knee-jerk reaction to try and make the nasty situation go away.
There would have been no problem if the expenses and allowances had been reasonable in the first place. Kelly' recommendations from yesterday try to address this. MPs should accept his recommendations in full (not cherry pick the bits they like) and also accept the fact that substantial pay rises are off the table.
More Posts by Mark Reckons
- Why Iain Dale is wrong about Zac Goldsmith
- Why we should not be afraid of a hung parliament
- Fiscal Responsibility Bill is a landmine for the Tories
- Yesterday I was proud to be a Lib Dem
- Alan Johnson's leadership chances are now finished
- Are MPs paid enough?
- Why has Alan Johnson sacked Professor David Nutt?
- Elizabeth Truss should not be deselected
- Nadine Dorries did not get to parliament on the same basis as everyone else
- Will Howells raises an interesting question about Twitter
