The Expenses Scandal was pretty exciting, wasn’t it? MPs claiming back 30p for staples, splashing out hundreds of pounds on garden ornaments, getting second homes when they lived but a hop, skip and jump away from the Houses of Parliament anyway.
The thing is, most inside Westminster (and a fair few outside) were desperate to explain to their public that they were underpaid compared to the jobs they could have got in the private sector, and expenses were a everyone-does-it way of topping up their earnings.
So the rallying cry today for higher salaries for MPs will no doubt be welcomed by most of them, even if they can’t show their glee/relief/sense-of-vindication publicly. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (the Commons expenses watchdog) has said MPs’ salary should be increased from its current £66,396 to £74,000 from 2015, with increases after that linked to average earning growth in the UK.
IPSA has also said MPs should get a less generous pension scheme that should be in line with the rest of the public sector. It also wants MPs to lose perks such as meal allowances, taxis and the like.
But should MPs be getting paid more at times like these? The debate will no doubt be fierce, particularly from the wide swathes of public sector workers whose pay has been cut or frozen.
The Twittersphere is, of course, in uproar.
The Guardian’s Bad Science author Ben Goldacre’s tweet below had 308 retweets as of 11:30am:
MP salaries need a review, but this is the wrong year. I will not vote for any MP who accepts an 11% pay rise in a time of cuts. RT if agree
— ben goldacre (@bengoldacre) July 11, 2013
Actress Danniella Westbrook has also waded into the debate – why not, right? She hasn’t got the figure quite right below (it’s a 11%, or £6,000 increase), but if all her 78,000 followers were to come out for a protest march, it could be quite the demonstration.
Ok so lets form a march against this pay rise.. 10k to MP’s when 1in5 family’s uses a food bank! I’m serious . This can’t go on! #Who‘sIn?
— Danniella Westbrook. (@westbrookdanni) July 11, 2013
As it happens, Danni is getting quite a bit of traction:
And (spoof account) Iain Duncan Smith had something to say about the matter too:
My salary is £65,000 a year. After petrol, food and housing are deducted I’m only left with £65,000 a year. I deserve a pay rise.
— Iain Duncan Smith MP (@IDS_MP) July 11, 2013
Nick Clegg and David Cameron have both said they wouldn’t accept the increase. The Deputy PM told LBC radio it was “about the worst time to advocate a double digit pay increase for MPs”.
What do you think? Share your views with us @londonlovesbiz or by leaving a comment below…
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