May 23, 2008
The latest expenses revelations: do we really care?
It’s been a hell of a long time coming and here are the MP expenses highlights. With ear-splitting drum roll………
Tony Blair: £11,200 on a new kitchen in Sedgefield
Gordon Brown: A £4,700 kitchen and a £372 Sky subscription
Peter Mandelson: A £3,000 shower. Correction: bathroom improvements including a shower.
(As passed on by a Tory who spent the last two hours reading the expense claims, by 14 senior MPs, forced into the open today by freedom of information requests).
Senior Tories to follow once we’ve read through pages of this stuff.
I’ll leave you to decide whether this is a big deal or not. Bear in mind that it has always been open knowledge that MPs could spend about £23,000 a year on mortgage costs, rent and other expenses needed to maintain a second home.
UPDATE:
The Sunday Times has led with the receipt from Ann Keen MP, showing she claimed insurance on her 70-year old husband’s life. That does seem curious.
We thought the most entertaining nugget was in Gordon Brown’s expenses, where the then Chancellor failed to add up his sums properly - to his own advantage. Here is the full story.
£11,200 at Sedgefield prices - I hope that was a new kitchen, not just refurbishing an existing one.
Posted by: John | May 24th, 2008 at 9:22 pm | Report this comment“do we really care?” - we won’t when publication becomes standard because MPs won’t make claims that they know would embarrass them - although any MP who pays an average of £94 a time to have the windows in their second home cleaned deserves to be laughed into oblivion.
Do we care????
As I have asked myself about many aspects of UK “competence” since returning from South Africa in 2006: Is this Britain or is it Africa?
My advice to South Africans (and Brits) is that, if you think the ANC is bad, try the Labour Party (and probably the Cons once they get into power), and if this is how our MPs and Ministers behave, how can anyone complain about Jacob Zuma?
Having just spent another 4 months in SA, Jacob Zuma might just be the guy to unite the left, right, and the rainbow nation, and sort out Zimbabwe, and his known corruption should be forgiven: what politician anywhere on Planet Earth is not corrupt, starting with those in the US and the UK??
Posted by: Zoe George | May 25th, 2008 at 10:47 am | Report this commentZoe George tries to smear all politicians by asking a rhetorical question that it is almost impossible for anyone except the individual politician to answer. However it is worth saying that no current British MP has been accused of the same set of crimes as Jacob Zuma. (As far as I can tell, those retaining the conservative whip have not, between them, faced the same charges).
Posted by: John | May 26th, 2008 at 1:00 am | Report this commentMs George has a idiosyncratic definition either of “corrupt” or of “politician” since the Dalai Lama is the de jure ruler of Tibet and head of its government-in-exile.
Starting in the UK, one could start with various hereditary peers and some Life peers such as Lord Coe who have demonstrated their rejection of, and indeed opposition to, corrupt offers. An American may well be able to offer a selection of names (I cannot imagine what she thinks might tempt the Junior Senator for West Virginia) and citizens of other nations will usually have their own lists.
I have known a large number of public-spirited individuals involved in local government at their own (sometimes considerable) expense: if Ms George’s term “politicians” includes such people, then the list of politicians who are not corrupt is too long to send over the internet.