MPs should freeze their own pay

[Jux]

They've awarded themselves a lovely payrise while the country's services for its citizens are falling apart.

I suggest they freeze their own pay for say 5 years and give the dosh saved to local Councils specifically to improve services.

Or they could take the modal salary of the country and use that money instead (my preferred alternative).

Or what could be done, do you think?

We need to attract the brightest and best you know.

We clearly aren't at whatever they are being paid, so it needs to go up.

My personal view is many people's salaries are too low, including MPs.

I can understand the frustration though, at this time especially with councils going bust.

I absolutely agree. Public sector worker. Less than 4% pay rise last year and before that we'd had our pay frozen. They should take the lowest publish sector settlement imo.

@SerendipityJane we need to attract public servants, not people like we have. Raising the pay will make no difference to the quality.

I agree with you but it'll never happen.

The problem is is that the system has to be set up so anybody can be an MP. Of course going to Eton helps get you selected for a party but it should be possible for Mavis from the local chippy to campaign and win a seat, and Mavis would need that money to be able to do the job.

You would never gets anyone applying/ standing for election. I don't think they get paid a huge amount anyway do they. Plus they face threats, hate mail etc.

Elected representatives should be properly paid so becoming one doesn't become the preserve of the elite.

MPs don't set their own pay. That is the responsibility of IPSA.

I very much believe there is enough money to pay MPs well and to fund local councils. Reducing the public sector has been a deliberate policy of the conservative government.

I have to say you could not pay me enough to be an MP. Under scrutiny 24/7, having to be contactable on holiday, endless emails and phone calls, never really been able to switch off if you do the job properly. I would be happy paying MPs more if we had better ones. That probably won’t happen though.

When the Labour Party introduced salaries for MPs it was to ensure that anyone could represent their constituency not just the elite / independently wealthy. Whilst I support a philanthropic / vocational attitude to service rather than being career driven I do think people need to be paid for their work. When salaries were introduced it was about 6x the average workers earnings, so from a parity POV this is better than it was.

I don't think their pay looks excessive, but would love to know what they can claim as expenses.

I would increase their pay, but get rid of expenses, and the subsidised bars and restaurants

Local services are decimated primarily because councils are spending over 75% of their budgets on adult social care and it’s ultimately unsustainable. MP’s salaries are a drop in the ocean in comparison.

This! It might focus MPs attention a little more if they had to accept the same pay rise as the rest of us. If they don’t want to do it for that pay then good riddance - their pay is much higher than average so how dare they deny other workers a pay rise.

Disagree. It’s a tough job and you need to attract decent candidates. Would you want the long hours and abuse?

Have you all forgotten the massive scandal of MPs’ expenses in 2009? The duck houses and swimming pools in their second homes that they bled the public purse dry for? The Kit Kats? Probably school fees for their children? The phantom mortgages?

Some of us are still incandescent with rage about that, while the recession was starting to bite. Like Boris Johnson’s parties, It was another case of “rules for thee, but not for me, we are freed from the rules that govern the peasants, ours is a high and lonely destiny”. It was fraud on a scale which those with less money than them would be sent to prison for.

They probably think we’ve forgotten about it now, and they’re probably doing exactly the same again, using the public purse to
line their pockets as well as their generous salaries, while they think we’re not looking.

They don’t need second homes. Give them a hall of residence style building. And they can stop bleating about how Parliament is falling down, so they need our money to rebuild it. Ditto Buckingham palace.

Scalt I agree with you. I have long been saying there should be hall of residence for MPs. The problem is that when they're all collected together in one place it makes them very vulnerable to attack, either directly or maybe a bomb-dropping drone as (apparently) recently happened at the Kremlin. They would need the same level of security as the House, the Palace etc. I've no idea whether that would cost more than individual second homes and associated expenses.

WRT expenses, are MPs still paying their HoC staff from their salaries? That aspect could be looked at.

Attracting the 'best' people. Well, it depends what you mean by best. Personally, I think,any of the younger MPs - especially Tories - have no idea how ordinary people live, what it's like to fight for a promotion because otherwise you're going to have to sell your house and downsize because mortgage interest has increased..... or because energy prices have shot up.

I have been contemplatong the problem of the calibre of politician we have, which is too often rather dire for a long time, and have no one to chat to about it. So please feel free to criticise! I do wonder whether we would get better candidates if we insisted on people who have had a number of years working outside of politics. Your chippy woman would be ideal and I would resent her - to me very high (we have to live on less than 25K, a LOT less!) - 90odd K salary far less than I resent payong thatmuch to any of them atm.

Oh come on.

If you want decent people to make decent laws you have to have normal treatment of them.

This attitude is silly.

Council budgets have been savagely cut by the Tories, now all that is left must go on social care.

But the bankruptcy of councils is a deliberate political choice from the Tory party.

I very much believe there is enough money to pay MPs well and to fund local councils. Reducing the public sector has been a deliberate policy of the conservative government..

This. The conservatives have an ideological hatred of the public sector. They do not believe anything can or should be run effectively on a non profit basis.