Anyone else sick and tired of the sound of the pigs snuffling in the trough with all these expenses?!
How can they do it? How can they have the brass neck to have us taxpayers buying stone sinks - and worse - and then have the neck to brazen it out?!
I can't take much more of this govt.

I agree 100% with you Carla! Gordon Brown, referring to the 'adult' movies watched at public expense, as 'a private matter' is just unbelievable! Since when has public money and standards in public life, been a private matter!

The whole system of payment to MP's of all parties, must be changed ASAP. I can't remember a time, when public perception of standards in public life, have been so low. Families struggling to pay their bills, and MP's can charge us for their entertainment!!

Best wishes

If they really want to change things it would be very easy to do it.  I work for a consultancy where people work away from home and they are allowed expenses etc but with a few simple rules.  If you are to far away to commute (anything more than 1.5 hours each way) you are allowed to stay in a hotel or if it's long term rented accomodation.  The company pay for the rent and food, and bills (you have to submit receipts for all of this).  Administrative support is paid by the company and you get travel expenses - again must be accompanied by receipts.

So MPs could be given rented accomodation rather than second homes (which they benefit from when they sell them on) bills would be paid (subject to receipts) and they'd get travel expenses (again subject to receipts).  All the office staff they require could easily be provided by the civil service, as could IT equipment etc they use.  This would be politically more acceptable and probably much cheaper.

Thats the same as our company. You don't take the mick as it would never be allowed - but they are so busy being greedy with OUR MONEY that no-one cares! If it was run like a business and tasked to save money it would be easy to reform - but its run like a flipping charity for useless, unwanted MP's!
Disappointed with Cameron this morning too for the same reason.

Shadbolts, you are absolutely right. It would be easy to change to the system you outline, Problem is, MP's of all parties have always had a vested interest in keeping the status quo! To be fair, I believe, that at long last, they may now be seriously addressing change.

About bloomin' time too!

Best Wishes

Oh don't get me started :-)  we battled this out at a recent work meeting :-)

I find it appalling what is going on.

Shadbolts, you are absolutely right. It would be easy to change to the system you outline, Problem is, MP's of all parties have always had a vested interest in keeping the status quo! To be fair, I believe, that at long last, they may now be seriously addressing change.

Trying to get things changed is not that easy when it concerns the civil service or policies.

I am in the middle of a big 'discussion' concerning Security Cleared Contracts with a certain senior civil servant and have put forward a clear and easy change to the process which would cost the Government no money and would in fact save money but the replies I have got have been unbelievable ! Full of pure flannel with no real reason to why they can't change the system. They are loosing millions of pounds due to the way they do things but hey whats a few million of pounds of our hard earned tax going straight down the plug hole !

Agree LJS!  It would be easy though, if the political will was there!  The system change is the easy bit, the mind set isn't.

Sick to death of it.  PM's shouldn't get expenses - they get paid enough as it is.  And if they want the job bad enough they should be glad to pay for it out of their own earnings.  That said, I very much doubt the more senior MP's put their own claims in - they have aides for those "menial" things.

It would be bad enough having the taxpayer paying for an MP's voyeurism, but to expect the public to pay for the spouse's voyeurism is so far beyond the limit it's out of sight!

JG, I doubt she even knew what was getting claimed in the first place.  It was very foolish and arrogant of her if she didn't check what was getting claimed though.

> Sick to death of it.  PM's shouldn't get expenses - they get paid enough as it is.  And if they want the job bad enough they should be glad to pay for it out of their own earnings. 

Sorry don't agree with this, if you have a job where you have to be in two different places you need to be paid for the expenses you incur.  If MPs were not paid expenses you'd end up with a situation where only rich people could afford to be an MP.  As I said before it's easy to put in place a fair system that would be politically acceptable to the majority of the population but the will to do it needs to be there.

LJS re security and Govt I know exactly what you mean!

> So MPs could be given rented accomodation rather than second homes (which they benefit from when they sell them on) bills would be paid (subject to receipts) and they'd get travel expenses (again subject to receipts).  All the office staff they require could easily be provided by the civil service, as could IT equipment etc they use.  This would be politically more acceptable and probably much cheaper.

quite. i'm of the view that perhaps parliment should purchase a large appartment block and provide a sort of MP's halls of residence (though i would be kind and wish them something far nicer than uni halls). it would save a fortune in the long run.

i wonder how much we would save as a country each year on parlimentary expenses?

> but hey whats a few million of pounds of our hard earned tax going straight down the plug hole ! <IMG class=qButton title="Quote selected text" height=10 alt="Quote selected text" src="/images/mi_quote.gif" width=20>

a school, lots of defibralators or a few more nurses, better disability allowances... but whats that to a shiney second home lol?

>> Sick to death of it.&nbsp; PM's shouldn't get expenses - they get paid enough as it is.&nbsp; And if they want the job bad enough they should be glad to pay for it out of their own earnings.&nbsp;
> Sorry don't agree with this, if you have a job where you have to be in two different places you need to be paid for the expenses you incur.&nbsp; If MPs were not paid expenses you'd end up with a situation where only rich people could afford to be an MP.&nbsp; As I said before it's easy to put in place a fair system that would be politically acceptable to the majority of the population but the will to do it needs to be there.
>

indeed, mps who need them should be allowed such expenses- however london MP;'s for example are just being cheeky! if your constituancy is a treck then of course they should be helped, yes their paid a whack but its for a high pressure job. those who are just diddling the tax payers are totally out of line though.

> It would be bad enough having the taxpayer paying for an MP's voyeurism, but to expect the public to pay for the spouse's voyeurism is so far beyond the limit it's out of sight!

in fairness this was apparently an error (dodgy staff work though!). that being said i also think its a bit off claiming for you internet connection (which is what the claim was ment to be for)

MP'S recieve a very good wage they also recieve, travel allowance, (if they travel they get paid) transport allowance, living allowance,(everyday items) food allowance, housing allowance and extra allowance if they ave a house outside their constituency and have to stay over in another house they have in their area, internet allowance and this is just what we know about.
i would love to get paid and then have nothing to pay out due to it being paid by expenses it would be great.

> Sick to death of it.  PM's shouldn't get expenses - they get paid enough as it is.  And if they want the job bad enough they should be glad to pay for it out of their own earnings. 

Sorry don't agree with this, if you have a job where you have to be in two different places you need to be paid for the expenses you incur.  If MPs were not paid expenses you'd end up with a situation where only rich people could afford to be an MP.  As I said before it's easy to put in place a fair system that would be politically acceptable to the majority of the population but the will to do it needs to be there.

LJS re security and Govt I know exactly what you mean!
Yes agree as they have a job and so are entitled to get out of pocket expenses as do most people who work.

It is so frustrating when I am looking at contracts and speak to the agencies. Because of the ludicrous system they use on Government run Projects they have to submit people with far less experience for jobs, it is a closed gene pool and in alot of cases employ people with the wrong skill set :-( I really do regret not getting a SC cleared job when I worked for a consultancy company.It would have been so much easier to secure a contract now we run our own Ltd company in this current climate.

My OH has a theory that if you actually want to be a politician then you shouldn't be allowed.

I had no idea that they could claim any house as a second home I thought it just meant a London flat not your Mum's or sisters, its appalling when Ive got two kids that cant get on the property step at all without me shelling out a deposit.

> I had no idea that they could claim any house as a second home I thought it just meant a London flat not your Mum's or sisters, its appalling when Ive got two kids that cant get on the property step at all without me shelling out a deposit

i think when it was introduced they didnt expect it to be used and abused, but they know how to use loopholes and as long as there is a loophole its fine.
terrible for someone in that position to abuse the system

If it was a company it would never have been allowed, I can get money for staying at a relatives but it is a token amount to cover their costs (I think it's about £25 per night Monday to Friday).  The fact that they can buy a house on expenses is unbelieveable not only do you get a house but when you retire (or lose an election) you have probably made a nice little sum when you sell the house.

my partner is involved in an interesting thread about this on a forum he's on. Apparently the MP for Falkirk is top of the travel expenses list, coming in dramatically higher than say the MP for Inverness (157 miles further north) becasue he flys everywhere!! one of the posters emailed him about it and the reply was a smidgeon clipped. Apparently (i paraphrase) 'someone needs to top the list' lol

the arrogance of it makes me sick. I feel so angry about it that I would welcome civil unrest. They are greedy, robbing, theiving lazy ****! I work and pay taxes to buy a sink for some MP to then make a profit on when she sells her "second home"?!!

> They are greedy, robbing, theiving lazy ****!

not all of them. many are hard working public servants.

however a fair few are also diddling the rest of out of our money.

if you live far from london you need a second residence there and traveling expenses. thats fair enough, as are staff expenses- democracy is not cheap nor should it be. on the other hand it should be fiscally responsible and manage our hard earned money rather better.

i love the idea of high taxes, despite being rodgered each month in my pay i don't really mind because it pays for things i need that are cheaper and better for it- i got my education for people taxes, my Crohnes is being treated from it, my dad survived his heart attack and my sister safely had my nephews, my bfs mum is cared for from disability funding so tax me all you want mr darling! however, i object to our money being directed into luxuries for people who are supposed to serve us.

on the other hand if i ran for office do you think i could claim for my dog as a 'bodyguard' lol?

totally agree with comments so far...

How can you claim that a room in your sisters house is a 'main residence' and then say that husband and 2 kids live in large detatched '2nd residence' :-O

Agree with the idea of putting them in a 'dormitary' block and if they already live inside the M25 then tough.. they commute

as for a protest.........anyone fancy joining the revolting peasants for another peasants revolt............there is a precedent back in ????.................(never any good at history) :-)

Chris

How anyone can seriously suggest that her 'main residence' isn't where her children live is beyond me!

The only problem with having a hall of residence for MPs (on the face of it a great idea) is that it would become a terrorist target, and the innocent people living nearby would get injured in the fallout.

> The only problem with having a hall of residence for MPs (on the face of it a great idea) is that it would become a terrorist target, and the innocent people living nearby would get injured in the fallout.

in fairness so is parliment itself. a little security could be implimented i'm sure at a smaller price than is currently being incurred.

my thought was we shouldn't have sold the dome and made those silly polititians that wanted it live there lol. oh, or the olympic village once its finished! that will have security anyway :)

> The only problem with having a hall of residence for MPs (on the face of it a great idea) is that it would become a terrorist target, and the innocent people living nearby would get injured in the fallout. <IMG class=qButton title="Quote selected text" alt="Quote selected text" src="/images/mi_quote.gif">

the governmen can purchase buildings in and around the country that would be far less to keep and keep the addresses secret. My oh works for soca and he does the same and his reg and house addesses are pnc blocked so surely something similar could be done

> as for a protest.........anyone fancy joining the revolting peasants for another peasants revolt............there is a precedent back in ????.................(never any good at history)

1381 - would you mind if I was not a leader though, that's one precedent I'd rather not follow

> my thought was we shouldn't have sold the dome and made those silly polititians that wanted it live there lol. oh, or the olympic village once its finished! that will have security anyway

I've thought that MP's (and MSP's come to that) should live in hostel accommodation since this all got stirred up last time (remember the MP who was claiming that his son was a 'researcher' when he was actually at uni?). Why am I paying (through taxes) for some MP's broadband and Sky connection? Why don't they have to provide receipts for all items costing more than £5. This is an interesting little list! £1000 for a bed is apparently not 'extravagant' nor is £100 for a coffee maker and £35 per sqm for a carpet! My daughter is at university which necessitates her living away from home, she can claim £800 loan per year which doesn't even cover 3 months rent far less living expenses, because our salaries are too much to get more than the basic loan. Our combined salaries are less than that of a bog standard MP who 'earns' more than £62000 + allowances, and probably benefited from full grant when he/she was at university, and works less weeks in the year than most of us! Must be great to get to vote for your own pay rise!

The days when all Members of the House were 'Honourable' are long past (if they ever existed) and its time they stopped feathering their own nests at the expense of the taxpayers. Those in the house of Lords should also lose their expenses, why are we paying for these old geezers (and their female equivalents) to read their papers and sleep? They should do their work at home or online and get a jolly to London 3 times a year to deal with any business that must be done face to face.

I can see there being riots over this yet because our MP's actually think they are 'worth it'. In the words of Robin Williams "Politics: "Poli" a Latin word meaning "many"; and "tics" meaning "bloodsucking creatures"."

Their expenses are more in a year than my house cost to buy and I'm struggling on my own to pay the mortgage.  I think it's disgusting that they are even allowed to claim on second homes etc. when you think of the money that they earn ............   I just think they are a load of greedy .......   and they should begin to live in the real world like the rest of us, though saying that footballers and actors are no better!

We in our job are not allowed to accept any gifts etc. from thankful customers so why should they be allowed to get so much especially as it's us that are paying for it in the long run.

We used to get cheaper cups of tea at work, but that was stopped as we would have to be 'taxed' on the 10p per cup we saved - it was a perk of the job - pity they don't apply it to their own 'perks' .

> I think it's disgusting that they are even allowed to claim on second homes etc.

I think because of the nature of their job most of them will need to have accomodation in London in addition to their constituency home but I do like the idea that has been mooted that accomodation could be owned by Parliament in the form of an apartment block.  Apparently other governments work this system.

Makes for interesting reading.

There are only 25 MP's who cannot claim additional allowances as they represent Inner London constituencies.
Begs the question how far some of the other 'outer' London MP's actually have to travel.
Perhaps by stipulating rules whereby for an MP to be entitled to claim extra housing allowances, he / she has to live a certain distance away from Parliament?
The recent story regarding Mr McNulty is a prime example - claiming almost £60k for his parents home in Harrow(where he did also live I hasten to add, and it is / was his constituency) which is a little under 11 miles from Westminster!  His other home is in Hammersmith.
It must stick in the craw of people who work in the City of London and the West End for example who have to commute every day!  But then on the other hand, although 11 miles from your work place doesn't sound a lot, but if anyone lives or works in or around London, we know how long an 11 mile journey can take! 
Not sure it necessarily warrants a second home however.  I could have done with one when I worked in Canary Wharf! lol

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7840678.stm

I'm one of those who has to commute into London as do a lot of others I know.  From where I am to the centre of London is 15 miles and takes 40 minutes on the train, I and a lot of others do this every day and it's part of working in London.  I personally have no sympathy for McNulty, he should not be allowed to claim for a second home.  His case is even worse in that his so called second home is not really any nearer to Westminister that his main home.