AIBU to be surprised by MPs earning £98k plus expenses?

I know lots of people who have wanted to do it, and would have been good at it, but when push came to shove couldn’t take the pay cut

I think the requirements on a good MP are huge, probably similar to the £140K+ /head of department banding in large private companies. Bankers and lawyers would earn significantly more.,

In reality MPs are no longer landed gentry who do public service as a way to occupy themselves and give back, so we need to pay to attract competent people. Otherwise the private sector will keep the talent.,

Daisy? She’s always working.

Good news is you don't need qualifications. Just get yourself elected which is obv the hard bit although Binface nearly did it

Whether £98k is a high salary depends on MPs individual backgrounds. To most Labour, Lib Dem, SNP, Green etc MPs it certainly is a massive increase on what they were raring as a local government officer, trade unionist, teacher etc before they were elected.

To many Tories, it represents a massive pay cut from their previous career in law, finance, corporate etc. Rishi Sunak is an outlier, but he is earning many £ millions from his investments every year & doesn’t need his MPs salary. Perhaps more representative is Andrew Griffiths the Shadow Chancellor. He was COO of Sky before being elected.

You're wrong

I was involved in politics for a while (elected as a councillor) and my husband stood for parliament twice. The people involved were overwhelmingly there because they wanted to change things for the better.

They could earn far, far more in a normal, private sector role.
I think they’re paid a pittance.

You couldn't get me to do it for that salary.

Not only would I earn less, but I'd have shit mental health from seeing so many terrible paparazzi snaps of me in the gutter press, along with hateful and threatening comments.

If I made the slightest mistake (especially if filmed), I'd never live it down. Internet forever.

I also would become a target for crazies. As would my family.

I honestly don't know if there is a price where I'd accept the disruption to my life.

It would be much easier for them to earn a lot more in a normal job.

MPs are in it for the salary, not to serve/do a good job. Their actions are only to keep themselves in a job, not for their constituents. Tell me im wrong

I think it’s shit pay.

Public sector workers get compensated for travel if they travel for work. Much like MPs. Or do you really expect MPs to be forming out thousands per month just to get to London?

I think you’re thinking of local councillors

MPs very much do have powers and don’t just go around kissing babies. They sit on committees, APPGs, many have ministerial and junior ministerial roles. They are literally the decision makers of the country, all whilst getting stalked by loonies, bellowed at by constituents who think they own them and wondering if they’ll be the next murdered MP

If you think it’s such a breeze, do it yourself.

If I’m having to live in 2 places for work I’d damn well expect work to pay for one of them. If I’m expected to schmooze people for work I want work to pay.

Being able to claim expenses means when they travel about to this or that event they get the train fare covered. Its standard in most jobs & is not money they keep.

Its absolutely terrible pay for the work & hours involved, which is why you dont get experienced headteachers, doctors, nurses, civil servants, accountants or engineers going into politics. It would be a pay cut.

What don’t you understand about expenses? They run a constituency office. They need to rent it, employ staff, get the biscuits and the printer etc, travel to London, have to rent and heat an entire second house in London or stay in a hotel etc. these are their expenses! It’s not free money!

We do when it’s needed, NHS consultants for example.

Not all public sector jobs need the best people. Most of them can be done well by many

I think it’s ok given how much of their life they give to the role. It’s a 5 year term under total scrutiny. Your constituents constantly complain you’re in London, which is a big part of the job where discussions and votes take place. If you don’t attend votes someone says you’re not representing your constituency. So you head back to the Constituency on Thursday night, to meet people there, attend events, do paperwork until Sunday evening when you travel back to London. You need two bases, some of which you can claim back but not all. You’re away from your family a lot and everyone is looking for everything you do wrong.

Yet there seems to be no shortage of highly paid people taking pay cuts to become MPs

Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak come to mind

The last thing we need are people becoming MPs for the money.

I've worked in the public sector all my working life and have never ever had anything supplied. Lucky to get a space in a fidge to put the milk in.

Why don't we (as a society) apply this to other public sector jobs?

I wouldn’t do it for as little as 98k