Why isn't Maria Miller in jail?

arknor said:
how does it?

to the majority of this country 65k is more than they will earn in 2-3 years

if it were 200k how would that make it easier for poor people to be an MP
it just means more rich toffs for them to compete with that are only in it for the money and get almost a free ride based on who they know
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Campaigning to win an a seat in an election is a full time job. You can't just chuck out a few leaflets before you have dinner. I know a couple of people who stood in the 2010 election who packed in a well paid job and didn't win. One did win but his but only by a few votes.

It's very long hours and compared to jobs in the private sector the wage isn't that great. Money attracts talent £65k might sound like a lot of money to someone earning £30k a year, but what about small / medium business owners, doctors, dentists who could be earning £85k / £120k a year? Can they afford to take a pay cut of that amount? Surely we want to be attracting people like them to parliament and not careers politicians because they can afford to.

Good article by Richard Branson worth reading http://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/should-politicians-be-paid-more
 
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scorza said:
I dunno, but if you or I claimed £45,000 worth of expenses we weren't entitled to I rather suspect we'd end up behind bars.
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My expenses department simply wouldn't sign it off. I mean what's going on here? MP sends in an expense form and the expenses department just pay it out without looking?
 
If as an MP you can't understand the rules on expenses then you have no place in any job requiring comprehension of the English language, least of all one that involves understanding and shaping legislation.

Maria Miller and anyone else up to the same thing or lax regard for following the correct rules should face a criminal prosecution as would anyone defrauding the benefits system or any other form of fraud.

She's a disgrace, totally lacking in integrity, should be totally ashamed of herself and be made to pay it all back.
 
Storm3y said:
So I take it you purchase stationary, office equipment etc at your place of work?

MPs are underpaid, for the amount of work and travelling up and down the country every week. It's a very difficult and stressful job. I work closely with a backbench MP. I personally support the rise in their wages, I think it's well deserved and hopefully people who don't have a fortune can get into politics.

Paying an MP £65k a year stops people who don't have wealth from becoming an MP.
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Don't forget the expenses we pay for. A doctor earning £120k can't claim for second homes and its council tax, phone bill etc.
 
cheesyboy said:
I would rather they were paid enough that they didn't have to balance all those other income streams to achieve a decent income whilst they're supposed to be in public service.

I agree that the salary shouldn't be too high. But if it is too low, then you open them up to other problems.

If I am an MP from a modest background, am I going to be motivated to take the tough decisions which may upset big business if I'm concerned about making enough money for my retirement? Maybe I'd be considering building personal relationships with business instead in case I lose my seat at the next election.

And I'm really not convinced that being an MP is an easy job. There's a lot of pressure there, and I know plenty of people who earn more than Politicians without anywhere near as much baggage to deal with.
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Their income isn't too low. It's just that these kind of people think everybody else should pay for the things they want.

And given your comments that your retirement fund would be your main priority once in office, you'd make a really good MP.
 
Storm3y said:
So I take it you purchase stationary, office equipment etc at your place of work?

MPs are underpaid, for the amount of work and travelling up and down the country every week. It's a very difficult and stressful job. I work closely with a backbench MP. I personally support the rise in their wages, I think it's well deserved and hopefully people who don't have a fortune can get into politics.

Paying an MP £65k a year stops people who don't have wealth from becoming an MP.
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The problem is that the current public opinion (on the whole) of MPs is pretty low, perhaps even very low, and when it comes to raising the wages of those that many see as corrupt, nepotistic and fraudulent, well that dog just ain't gonna hunt!

I'm certain that some MPs are honest and hard-working, but there are more than a few rotten apples spoiling this barrel.
 
Woden said:
Don't forget the expenses we pay for. A doctor earning £120k can't claim for second homes and its council tax, phone bill etc.
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No because presumably doctors live within commuting distance to their place of work.
 
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Storm3y said:
No because presumably doctors live within commuting distance to their place of work.
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Maria Miller's constituency home was in Basingstoke, a mere 45 minutes away from central London on the train. How many people do you reckon commute from Basingstoke to London every day?
 
scorza said:
Maria Miller's constituency home was in Basingstoke, a mere 45 minutes away from central London on the train. How many people do you reckon commute from Basingstoke to London every day?
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A lot. But there are rules about how far the MPs constituency is from Westminster to whether or not they can claim expenses etc. Maybe these should be looked at again.



At least she has did the right thing and donated her pay off to charity.
 
Storm3y said:
At least she has did the right thing and donated her pay off to charity.
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No, she said she will donate it to charity. By the time she gets the payoff she'll be yesterday's fish and chips wrapper and I doubt anyone will check whether it happens.

I noticed she never what specific charity will be getting it, probably Eton College.

But then I am a massive cynic.
 
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My boss earns way more than an MP, and has probably half the responsibility/duties of an MP and even better he never has to face public criticism. There are very few jobs worse than being an MP. Perhaps being the ManU manager :p
 
PMKeates said:
Oh, and even if you do a brilliant job, you can still get fired for no reason ;)
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Yeah, I don't really want to be in politics :p Better prospects, and more stability where I am at the moment.

They work hard, but they don't work harder than their wage and benefits would demand in the private sector.
 
Storm3y said:
A lot. But there are rules about how far the MPs constituency is from Westminster to whether or not they can claim expenses etc. Maybe these should be looked at again.
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It's not just about the rules though is it? These people are in a position of trust, so are not expected that the rules are exploited for their own personal gain. The clue is in the name "expenses", if you incur an expense because of your job then it's right that the job reimburses you. The mortgage on her home in London isn't what any reasonable person would regard as a legitimate business expense, and then we get into the realm of how dishonest she's been, claiming it as her second home when her parents were living there full time and there's not a lot of evidence that she spent much time at her constituency home.

Storm3y said:
At least she has did the right thing and donated her pay off to charity.
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I'd rather that she showed genuine remorse and convinced us that she knows that she did something wrong.
 
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