What price a servant?

From the mirky depths of British public life emerges a monster in distress. I refer of course to the House of Commons whose members are outraged by proposals to cut expense claims. This is the same group of people who were recently exposed to be abusing the very same privileges on an unbelievable scale.

For fear of sounding overly old fashioned, I was always under the impression that a Member of Parliament was a democratically elected public servant. Unless anybody can put me right on this, it seems difficult to understand why their £66,396 is considered in some way insufficient. At more than double the national average of £26,500, this seems quite generous to me given that many MPs supplement their Parliamentary income with various directorships and consultancies anyway.

I can only hope that the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) stands by their decision and brings the MPs in to the 21st century with everybody else. The absurdity of their objections really does take soem believing. Among the main complaints were a loss of hospitality tea and biscuits, a loss of £15 evening meals if Parliasment sits after 7.30pm, hotels before 1.00, taxi fares home before 2300, contents insurance for a second home and, if you can believe it, installing a TV in second home.

As public servants, I'm amazed they have time to watch TV - I don't and I'm not even earning. As for tea and biscuits, I am amazed by their cheek. If the removal of such privileges means we lose a load of self serving parasites, their replacements would presumably be grateful to do the same job sans biscuits - I would! Therev are evidently far too many people aiming to make a cosy career out of political life rather than serving the best interests of the constituents they purport to represent. Second homes? They're lucky they've even got one at a time when thousands of people can't even afford to keep the roof over their head. Now is not a good time for the politicians to be on the make. Their bargaining power was surrendered when the full extent of their greed was exposed by the Telegraph. The biggest scandal is the bare faced cheek. People like Cameron, Clegg and Milliband have never worked in the sense that you or I would understand and it sometimes really shows. The world owes them no more than it owes you or I so roll on the Parliamentary austerity. At least that way we will be left with those who really do have our best interests at heart.

They compare themselves to other professionals. The problem is that they don't behave like them.