MP's Expences Proposed Change

[Kodiak]

The Prime Minister has released a Press Statement regarding the Expances of MP's. He has said that they should be made more Simple and he is looking for a debate and a vote in the House of Commons Next week on this matter.

Some of the points he would like to see put in place are, The 2nd Homes Allowance for MP.s to be Abolished and that all Staff employed by MP's, including any and all Family Members, should be employed directly by the House of Commons.

There is a Video released by No 10 where Gordon Brown explains the Proposals and Link is Below.

Please watch and listen and post your thoughts. Are these Good Ideas or is it too little too late? I dont know but I would love to read what you all think.

http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page19060

K

[MadPict]

About time. The latest expose that MPs claim allowances because they can is frankly just confirming that they are greedy snout in trough money grabbing cheats.
Hoon (?) claiming a second home allowance even though he is only 11 miles from his work because it is within guidelines was ridiculous. Many MPs are honest and don't line their own pockets and those who have taken advantage of allowances should be made to pay back what they have claimed.
If you or I did this the tax man would be all over us...

[Gene Hunt]

MP's wont vote for it. The reason they never listen to the public is because they cant hear us because their ears are so far into the trough. I personally think they should get a slightly bigger salary and make do. And the employment of family members should be banned as well. And while we are at it their cheap bars should go too. Its about time they learned that they work for us and not the other way around, they act like we are here to support and obey them and not the other way around.

I have met a few MP's and there isn't one that didn't come across an oily smug oik that I wouldn't sell my first born for just one swing at.

I personally think its time for a Guy Fawkes Revival.

[Kenn]

Seeing fine words put into actions might convince me but some how I doubt, even with the best of intentions, that this government is capable of serious,well thought out legislation if their past record is any thing to judge by.
Surely the best solution would be a fixed salary for MPs with no allowances appart from the cost of travel when representing constituencies that are distant from Westminster.
Their secretaries should be directly employed by the state and not at the whim of the individual.
Despite Mr Brown's pronunciations on the matter, I for one will not be surpised if little or nothing happens.

[Humerous Vegetable]

Even in the unlikely event of this ever happening, it would not address the very serious abuses of allowances by MEPs and members of the House of Lords, who would not be covered by any new legislation.
It was recently estimated that members of the European parliament can make profits of millions of pounds over their 5 years in power and are generally voted in by less than 40% of the electorate.
I reckon it's time the electorate went on strike, and refused to vote any of them in. I have voted in almost every election in the past 35 years, but I won't be voting this June.

[Gene Hunt]

Even in the unlikely event of this ever happening, it would not address the very serious abuses of allowances by MEPs and members of the House of Lords, who would not be covered by any new legislation.
It was recently estimated that members of the European parliament can make profits of millions of pounds over their 5 years in power and are generally voted in by less than 40% of the electorate.
I reckon it's time the electorate went on strike, and refused to vote any of them in. I have voted in almost every election in the past 35 years, but I won't be voting this June.

German TV did a cracking expose of the MEP's signing the attendance register on a Friday morning so they could claim attendance expenses saying they were there all day and then filmed them leaving straight away .. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dU55TEOJXGo

[JAWS]

Just more spin to distract attention from tomorrow's Budget which cannot really be anything but a horror story.

The announcements about Expenses and the suggestions about Speed Limits are, in effect, the opposite of "Today is a good day to bury bad news." whilst everybody is concentrating on a massive disaster.

They are just hoping that people will be concentrating so much on eye catching trivialities that the Budget becomes just another news story along with the rest. The timing of the announcements are just too convenient to be accidental in the hope that Mr Nice Guy catches the publicity in preference to Mr Disaster.

It's a good trick if it works but this one is too obvious for that.