| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:MPs expenses | |
| Posted by: | Fraser Pearce | |
| Date/Time: | 22/05/09 13:43:00 |
| A vast amount of MPs' time is spent working on committees, not on the Floor of the House, so it is scarcely surprising that the Chamber often appears pretty empty.” I don’t have historical House attendance rates to hand but do have some numbers for select committees. - Of the main committees, over 27% of MPs failed to attend even half of their meetings last year. - Attendance for the main committees last year was 64%, down from 70% in 2002-03. - Attendance at select committees on areas such as education and foreign affairs dropped 10% over the last in five years. Select committees provide one of the few remaining opportunities for MPs to effectively scrutinise government policy – yet increasing numbers of MPs seemingly can’t be bothered to attend them. This reinforces the point about whether MPs provide value for money. Once again, in comparison to previous parliaments, they don’t. As I said in my email, if people such as the chairmen of the Defence Committee* were more effective, people like me wouldn’t be asked to smuggle body armour or speedloaders through customs for soldiers about to be posted abroad. Similarly, if committees such as this had been more thorough in their scrutiny, some servicemen and women may still be alive today. ------- *As chairman of the Defence Committee, James Arbuthnot is paid an extra £20,000 a year on his salary. In terms of expenses, however, Arbuthnot charged us for the cleaning of his swimming pool, a housekeeper, house insurance and treating unsafe trees. Again, this is the reason for the distinction between “salary” and “pay”. As for final salary schemes, my sometimes shaky memory tells me that MPs have the best scheme in the country. In terms of the total pay Suzanne mentioned, the last figures I have were (I think) from 2006-2007. This equated to average MP expenses of almost £136,000. The Teather research from the Adam Smith Institute, however, treats MPs' pay as post-tax income. This equates to an average salary for 2007-2008 of £71,608, average pension of £19,191, average expenses of £228,215 and average total equivalent pay of £319,013. Teather rates Justine Greening 635th out of the country’s “Parliamentary Fatcats” (meaning she’s the 9th best value MP). |