To think Piers Morgan has a point?

[Bluebellpainting]

Personally not a fan of Piers Morgan and his interview style annoys me with the constant interruptions. However when questioning the health secretary I did think he had a point about taking a pay cut. Matt Hancock was quite quick when asked to suggest that footballers should take a pay cut but isn’t willing to do the same himself. My husband and I disagree but wondered what others thought. AIBU to think the Matt Hancock is being hypocritical by suggesting others should be taking a pay cut but not being willing to take one himself?

That principle would be fine genevieva if he had said he didn't think any businesses should be claiming furlough for lower paid staff while continuing to pay large salaries in full to those at the top. As he didn't, it's legitimate to question why he didn't. There was nothing preventing him saying either then or subsequently that his principle doesn't only apply to footballers.

I think in New Zealand MPs have taken a 20% pay cut.

Whilst I don’t think a pay cut is necessary the up to £10000 work from home allowance MPs got was disgraceful. Obviously they all have laptops, printers and screens already. Anything they didn’t have they could have borrowed and put in the back of their car from one of their offices like the rest of the country. Just an excuse to buy new unnecessary kit at the tax payers expense.I think MPs should be like the NHS and have to get shit tech which is supplied by a procurement office!

I don’t think it is hypocritical suggesting someone who earns millions a week and isn’t earning should take a pay cut without taking one yourself. It’s only hypocritical if you earn the same amount yourself because then you are in a comparable situation.

In terms of hedge funds, yes, lots of people could also take pay cuts but the reason footballers did was a pure PR choice. It wasn’t mandated by the government, so again, nothing to do with the health secretary. Hedge funds don’t generally deal with the public in the same way so don’t care about PR. Plus a lot of them have already made loads of people redundant so not like they’re all fine and dandy either.

When taxes rise for everyone after all this hedge fund managers, foreign multi £billionaires who live in the U.K. need to have a huge increase in tax.

Piers, is that you?

Hilarious. I know that not being woke is highly unfashionable but there it is.

@ElisavetaOfBumsornia Did you see the Q&A in which he said it? It was at the end of a really long daily briefing in his first day back after sick leave for coronavirus. He looked knackered. It wasn't a carefully composed reply. He basically just agreed with the journalist asking him the question. I really don't think we can read too much into it.

I would pay for Piers Morgan to disappear off my screen, he's a horrible individual. He doesn't bother to even let his interviewee's speak.

I certainly don't think our MPs deserve the extra 10k they can claim for the 'extra expenses' of working from home.

"In response to criticism of the decision, Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the money would have to be accounted for in the usual way."

"He said: "It is wrong to characterise this extra £10,000 allocated by IPSA as MPs giving themselves additional funds."

"On the contrary, this money is being used to enable MPs' staff to set up home working to support distressed constituents at a time of crisis. Many MPs have seen their casework soar as a direct result of coronavirus."

"Enabling staff to work remotely is the best and the safest way for them - and the constituents they are in contact with - to communicate and work together during these difficult times."

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52231592

Clavinova, I thought that was a bit odd too. It isn't a pay rise - it is access to money for increased costs of having a constituency office working remotely. Goodness knows what those costs might be. I find it hard to believe it would cost £10K to set up a few members of staff with the right software / whatever else they need. I hope that any claims made from this fund are properly declared and scrutinised.

Not read full thread, but wasn't the context of his original comment that the football clubs were furloughing lower paid staff, ie. the tax payer was being asked to pay their wages, whilst the players were still being paid extortionate salaries.

It's quite interesting that the New Zealand prime minister has taken a 20% pay cut for the next 6 months and I believe ordered her cabinet to do the same. She said it may not make a big difference but they have to be sent to lead and set examples

She's on an extortionate salary anyway so taking a permanent 20% pay cut would be far more appropriate. The appalling state of New Zealand's healthcare system speaks volumes for the quality of job she's doing.

I know a lot of people don't like Piers but let's face it, he's had the balls to ask a lot of questions that no one else has. In fact he has shown some piss poor performance from a lot of mps and ministers interviewed on his show.

Only by him being 'gobby' has parking charges been scrapped for nhs workers and in fact he has taken on all parking tickets issued to our nhs staff, which is a total disgrace!

Some might not like his interview style but I do think he has made some really good progress with things during the pandemic. They all come on, bar Matt Hancock and spout the same sentence over and over again, never answer a direct question, skirt round everything and apologise for f all. Jesus that woman even thought it was appropriate to laugh yesterday, although it was because she couldn't see the newspaper he was holding up, I think with the subject they were talking about was a disgrace!

Only my opinion though, mps will never take a pay cut so really it's not even worth asking him about!

The issue is that MP not only havent had a pay cut but they actually gave themselves MORE money to work from home!

I havent seen any worker getting paid more, not even the NHS staff who are putting their life at risk (In some other cuntries, healthcare workers have had a pay rise btw beause their work has been actually recognised for what it is). And this is despite the fact many workers have had to buy things to be able to work from home (see the fact that one of the areas that has seen a HUGE increase in orders in all the office paraphelia such as desk chairs etc....).

Footballers have nothing to do with that. If the club that employs them is happy not to furlough them and is still paying them to 'work from home' (which I assume means carrying on with their daily training as much as they can from home) then this is the club choice. The government has nothing to say about that, no more than it should tell companies off if they want to carry on to pay their employees full pay even though they are not 'at work'.

@Lily193, because the NHS isnt in an appauling state?

I dont think anyone n the UK is in a place to have go to make any comments like this.

Matt Hancock says that he's working every hour god sends, and I believe that would be true. Footballers aren't working.

@Clavinova, apart from the act that NO OTHER WORKER has been given any allowance to be able to set up their work at home.
DH is currently working on the dinning table, probably like manyother people wrking from home. We dnt have an office. The position of the table/laptop is wrong so he ends up with backache/neckache at the end f the day. He is using our printer so we are paying for the ink/paper. And no he will not get any of that 'money' back!!

Seeing that many of them ALREAY work form home/have consituency office with equipemnt they could use and move to their home, I'd like to know why they need even more money.

The issue is that MP not only havent had a pay cut but they actually gave themselves MORE money to work from home!

No they havn't. It's "up to" £10k to support their staff working from home, so to cover new computers, phones, broadband, office equipment, etc., all to be supported by receipts. That's VERY different from it being a freebie as you imply!

Matt Hancock has chosen to become and MP/minister and that amount of work in those circumstances come with the territory. Even if those circumstances are unusual.

@Kazzyhoward, see my post above....

apart from the act that NO OTHER WORKER has been given any allowance to be able to set up their work at home.

How on Earth can you make such a sweeping, ridiculous statement?

I know, for a fact as I've seen the bills, that many employers have been buying new equipment for their staff to work from home.

The appalling state of New Zealand's healthcare system speaks volumes for the quality of job she's doing

It can’t be that bad judging by the number of newly qualified NHS trained doctors who can’t wait to jump ship to go and work in it.

"All Blacks players set for 50 per cent wage cut."

"Freeze on half of player spend will also affect Super Rugby, sevens and womens teams."

"Up to €14 million could be wiped from the pockets of New Zealand’s top rugby players after they agreed to salary cuts due to the pandemic."

www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/all-blacks-players-set-for-50-per-cent-wage-cut-1.4230337

QuestionMarkNow

Have you lived in both countries and experienced both healthcare systems? Do you know how, for example oncology care and availability of the most up to date therapies, compares? The NHS is far, far superior in my own personal experience. PM me if you'd like specific examples.

Just reading this thread and literally gobsmacked at the number of posters who - despite reminding from other posters - don’t seem to grasp that Matt Hancock did not single out footballers and their pay packets. He was asked a direct question concerning the propriety of huge dividends being paid to directors and footballers retaining their massive salaries whilst their clubs simultaneously went cap in hand to the government requesting taxpayers money to furlough their more ‘menial’ staff which is utterly reprehensible.

Alsohuman

How does that translate to quality of patient care?