WELL folks, another sterling week in British politics wouldn’t you say?
Where does one start?
We really need to remind the MPs – that they work for US and we pay their wages and expenses.
If you consider the infrastructure of the UK Government in corporate terms, we are the board of directors and they the workforce on the floor. (If only!)
But I don’t know of any company that allows its staff to decide for themselves how much they get paid, when they should receive a raise, how much they can claim in expenses and then vote to keep said decisions secret.
I remember reading about the expenses claimed by some Aberdeen City Councillors a while ago. I took my hat off to one young councillor who claimed nothing – Depute Provost John West, below, obviously a person of some integrity.
Now there’s a leader worth following.
It’s all very well being in a job that carries lucrative perks, which most people would milk. Remember my supposed £500 bowl of cereal in Edinburgh?
I waived my performance fee for some gigs I played for the Scottish Parliament. They covered my costs – which in my case covered me, a five-piece band and a tour manager.
But when you’re a cabinet minister – accountable to the nation and serving the, now extinct, public trust – what kind of a person claims for horse manure and biscuits?
Other Government employees such as nurses, teachers and firemen have to strike to get better pay and conditions.
This week in 1926, this country was brought to its knees by the famous General Strike which lasted 10 days.
Just a thought...
Sort out the banks, marshal the MPs, halt the rising cost of living and get all our troops home now, then we’ll talk!
Furthermore, we should demand the banks which are majority-owned by the tax payer be properly nationalised and cease functioning as private companies. These banks should become another government department, with government-level salaries and pensions.
They should be amalgamated into one national bank of the UK.
I myself bank with one of the majors recently bailed out by the tax payer and I am charged £63 if I go even 1p over my overdraft limit.
And trust me there are some months when my finances are stretched beyond the limit.
I am sick of practices like these and I want it to stop!
They talk about stricter regulations, well how about introducing measures that benefit everyday people who are now the majority shareholders?
Somehow, I doubt we will receive invitations to the AGM.
I’m reminded of Monty Python’s Holy Grail, where the peasant Dennis famously debates the idea of government with King Arthur.
“Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses,” he says.
Quite true indeed.
Perhaps we should give Dennis’ system a go, where we all take it in turns to act as executive officer for the week.
Couldn’t hurt, could it?