Rishi after Pensions Tax Relief

badmemory

No I would prefer the basic tax code to be level with the minimum wage, or to be increased by the size of the MPs pay rise.  I'd also like the number of MPs to be reduced by around 300.  After all most of them seem to vote the way they are told even when they know it is wrong.  There are lots of things I would like, as in none personal things, but I know are not going to happen.

arnoldy

badmemory said:

No I would prefer the basic tax code to be level with the minimum wage, or to be increased by the size of the MPs pay rise.  I'd also like the number of MPs to be reduced by around 300.  After all most of them seem to vote the way they are told even when they know it is wrong.  There are lots of things I would like, as in none personal things, but I know are not going to happen.

Yes dead right about the MPs numbers, and the House of Lords should be reduced - at least halved - and then new blood Engineers, Scientists, Entrepreneurs, Tradesmen, Farmers, Care workers, ordinary people who have had to work for a living etc. not the current mix of political cronies, C of E, and various pensioned off Civil Servants and Quango feeders.

zagfles

arnoldy said:

badmemory said:

No I would prefer the basic tax code to be level with the minimum wage, or to be increased by the size of the MPs pay rise.  I'd also like the number of MPs to be reduced by around 300.  After all most of them seem to vote the way they are told even when they know it is wrong.  There are lots of things I would like, as in none personal things, but I know are not going to happen.

Yes dead right about the MPs numbers, and the House of Lords should be reduced - at least halved - and then new blood Engineers, Scientists, Entrepreneurs, Tradesmen, Farmers, Care workers, ordinary people who have had to work for a living etc. not the current mix of political cronies, C of E, and various pensioned off Civil Servants and Quango feeders.

Indeed, if we're going to have an unelected second chamber it shouldn't consist of retired politicians, civil servants and whatever other spurious criteria they use. It would be better to randomly select members of the public, at least it would then actually be representative!

Re MP numbers, Cameron tried to reduce the numbers and equalise consitituencies but Labour objected because it'd have robbed them of their advantage (average Labour consistuency has fewer voters).

And of course MPs nearly always vote along party lines, that's the point of voting for a party. No government could ever govern properly if their MPs acted as individuals, that's why all parties have the "whip" system. By standing an a party MP they are saying they will act collectively on their party's policies and leadership. If voters don't like it, they can elect an independant MP who'll vote according to their own beliefs rather than as part of a party. Sometimes MPs rebel of course, but it is unusual. There do seem to be lots of stupid people on FB who constantly complain that their local MP voted along party lines rather than the way they'd have preferred (usually because they voted for a different party!!).

badmemory

What I really take issue with is not with them voting along party lines, but them voting for something which will be illegal.  I am thinking NI/Brexit fiasco.  Their condoning of actions which whilst may not be illegal are not good, I am thinking Cummings & Durham here, whilst at the same time condemning someone else for doing something much less serious.

zagfles

badmemory said:

What I really take issue with is not with them voting along party lines, but them voting for something which will be illegal.  I am thinking NI/Brexit fiasco.  Their condoning of actions which whilst may not be illegal are not good, I am thinking Cummings & Durham here, whilst at the same time condemning someone else for doing something much less serious.

The country voted for Boris just after all the stuff about proroguing parliament, which the supreme court found was unlawful!! The people decide who the govt is, not the courts! And they do that by mainly voting for party MPs. Just like in the US at the moment, seems some people just can't accept democratic election results just because they think people should have voted differently.

Can't believe people are still banging on about Cummings, some adviser the media doesn't like broke the rules so they bang on and on about it. Loads of people broke the rules, including MPs, hardly any lost their job as a result but the media were insisting that happen to Cummings.