Malcolm Rifkind and Jack Straw more scum politicians

pmduk

JReacher1 wrote: »

It won't be popular but MP's are very underpaid. £67k is obviously a very good salary for the people who frequent these boards but in reality these people could earn many times that money in the private sector.

Surely if they expect the rest of society to live in a market economy then so should they?

I want politicians paid to live adequately not do their job solely to receive a huge salary.

marvin

Politicians are "public servants" and as such should not expect to be paid what they would be paid elsewhere. Public service by its very nature has an element of giving to the greater good, which is what our politicians should be doing.

Sadly, however, we have got a bunch of career politicians who see it as their divine right to be paid a fortune for being in "public service".

Maybe we should stop people seeing being in politics as a career and limit them to 8 years in every 20 or something.

Dreamnine

Back in the late 90s I was in prison briefly with a chap who assaulted Rifkind's son here in Edinburgh.

I never liked Malcolm Rifkind - quite brilliant politician, perhaps, for a Tory and my M.P. for years, but I always felt there was something off about him.

knightstyle

These two deserve all the bad publicity they are getting.
But why aren't we told the names of all the MPs who refused to entertain this scam?????

thor

JReacher1 wrote: »

I prefer MP's to have real world experience.

It is unreasonable to expect someone who had worked as a lawyer, manager, chief exec, director etc. on a salary well in excess of £200k to change their standard of living as a result of moving into politics and massively reducing their income.

The current rules allow MP's to supplement their income and this encourages better candidates to be MP's.

Does not seem to have worked out too well there then.

JReacher1 wrote: »

It's an issue that will never get support as the majority of people in the UK earn less than £67K so see it as a fortune.

Personally I couldn't afford to become an MP on that salary. My wife would kill me!

I don't care how much 'real world experience' a person has, if you can't live off live off £67K per year then you have no idea about the lives of Joe Public and should not be influencing how money is raised and spent by the government.

JReacher1

thor wrote: »

Does not seem to have worked out too well there then.


I don't care how much 'real world experience' a person has, if you can't live off live off £67K per year then you have no idea about the lives of Joe Public and should not be influencing how money is raised and spent by the government.

This is why I knew my post would be unpopular.

There are certain people (who come from many backgrounds) who are very clever and get very good grades, they then go to the top universities and graduate with honours.

These people can move into the private sector and earn hundreds of thousands of pounds.

These people are an asset to the country and i don't think they should be penalised for wanting to serve their country.

i want people like this representing me so its either we increase MP's salaries to something that is acceptable e.g £100k plus or we accept they have outside interests.

Alternatively we get a lower class of MP who basically isn't talented enough to run the country!

Exile_geordie

whitegoods_engineer wrote: »

It seems that poor Malcolm Rifkind struggles on his paltry £67000 a year salary so he flogs access to contacts as a lucrative sideline. Apparently this is justified by him on the basis that, as a lawyer, he could earn much more outside the commons. WE'LL FLAMING WELL GO AND BECOME A LAWYER THEN!

don't want to burst your bubble there petal but he is a lawyer and eschewed that to go into a life of politics.

dld2s

JReacher1 wrote: »

This is why I knew my post would be unpopular.

There are certain people (who come from many backgrounds) who are very clever and get very good grades, they then go to the top universities and graduate with honours.

These people can move into the private sector and earn hundreds of thousands of pounds.

These people are an asset to the country and i don't think they should be penalised for wanting to serve their country.

i want people like this representing me so its either we increase MP's salaries to something that is acceptable e.g £100k plus or we accept they have outside interests.

Alternatively we get a lower class of MP who basically isn't talented enough to run the country!

I can see where you are coming from in your thoughts, but do you really, hand on heart believe we have a talented bunch of MP's! personally I see a mostly lot of talentless folk who have their snout in the money trough andare in the pocket of big business, and tell you what, if we paid them £150k a year it still wouldn't be enough for them

frisbeej

The reward of improving life for their fellow man should be the attraction of politics. They should be inspirational leaders, not the fattest pigs on the gravy train.

foxtrotoscar_2

Neither of them have exhibited a great deal of intelligence or common sense, indeed they have shown a distinctly poor lack of judgement. £67k/year plus expenses is way more than they deserve.