Wait a sec. Lembit Opik FAILED to pay tax, and then used money derived from other people's TAXES to pay the fine?

I know it's only £40, but that is utterly indefensible.

Yes, this is indefensible even though it is a trivial amount. If he thought he had a valid excuse for late payment he should have taken it up with the local authority.

This gravy train has got to come to an end. :rolleyes:

 

Initially when I read of the scandal concerning Damian Green, I thought that neither the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker should be from the Government side of the house.

 

Now, looking at this wonderful MPs' expenses row, I think that they should be civil servants and completely impartial to serve there in the public interest, not the party interest or their colleagues' interests.

 

Should be interesting to see if the European Parliament will be investigated as well.

Technically the Speaker is not on any benches. He ceased to be a member of any party when he got the job. Almost every new Speaker has been elected from the benches of the government of the day. And there are several deputy Speakers from all parties.

 

I don't think Michael Martin's handling of this has anything to do with hem being a former Labour MP. After all, it was a Labour MP who was on the receiving end of a tongue-lashing from him. But he has handled this badly and, regrettably, I think he should go.

I think we all knew that MP's fiddled expenses (or took massive liberties) so I'm not really shocked by it at all. Nothing will change and there's nothing we can do about it anyway.

 

Making the most of 'expenses' if you're one of the lucky ones who fit into the bracket of 'expense-claiming' staff - goes on in most public sector areas - Councils, Housing, NHS, etc. I'm not defending it or saying its right in any way - it just happens.

 

Norma

 

We as voters can vote them out at the general election, vote for a new candidate who is not tainted by this scandal. Hell, vote for an independant or even the Monster Raving Loony Party :lol: . If my MP is tainted by this, if he stands at the next election I will not vote for them. We should all do the same.

 

On the expenses culture, you mention the councils,Housing,NHS....I see a connection, they are all funded by the taxpayer. Most private companies have very strict regulations on approving them.

 

The rule should be, you should not gain and you should not lose from expenses, but they must be wholly incured in connection with you duties.

Tory MP quits post over expenses

 

Conservative MP Andrew MacKay has quit as parliamentary aide to David Cameron over what the party said was an "unacceptable" expenses claim.

 

He claimed most of the second home allowance on his London home, while his wife, Tory MP Julie Kirkbride, claimed the full amount for another address.

 

Mr Cameron has said all Tory MPs must be able to defend their expenses.

 

In a separate development Gordon Brown announced that ex-minister Elliot Morley has been suspended from Labour.

 

And the Conservative former minister Douglas Hogg has said he will repay £2,200 in expenses - the cost of clearing a moat at his Lincolnshire estate.

 

He argued the costs were included on paperwork submitted to the fees office but were not claimed. But on Thursday he acknowledged the clearing was "not positively excluded" from the claim.

 

'Unacceptable'

 

The Conservatives said Mr MacKay had voluntarily submitted his expense claims to party officials and these had revealed "an unacceptable situation that would not stand up to reasonable public scrutiny".

 

Mr Cameron told BBC News: "It is not enough just to say the system is to blame. Consequences have to follow."

 

In 2007-8 Mr MacKay claimed £22,575 of the second homes allowance while Ms Kirkbride claimed £23,083 - the maximum permissible.

 

Mr MacKay said they had both claimed the allowance on two separate properties "for eight or nine years".

 

"Although Mr MacKay maintains that those arrangements were agreed by the fees office, he resigned this morning with immediate effect," said a party spokesman.

 

He said he had followed the advice of the Commons fees office but he now realised the arrangement did not pass Mr Cameron's "reasonableness" test and he felt it was "wrong" to remain in his position.

 

He told the BBC: "Due to an error of judgement in accepting advice from the fees office I have let a lot of people down.

 

"I passionately believe in Parliament, in our democracy, and I think it is very important that members of Parliament are held in high regard."

 

'Error of judgement'

 

He said it was up to his constituents in Bracknell whether he should continue to be their MP.

 

"I will also be holding a public meeting so that any one of my constituents who wants to come and talk to me and cross-examine me can do so next week," he said.

 

He said he had apologised to Mr Cameron for "causing any hurt or difficulties" and had offered to repay the money, depending on what the Conservatives' new scrutiny panel, announced by Mr Cameron on Tuesday, decided.

 

Source: BBC News

 

Well the first one to resign, there should be a lot more. Talking about milking the system.

I just love it how MP after MP is claiming it was an error or a mistake, these must be the most imcompetent people in the Country, glad they are not running the Country. Wait a minute, holy f*** they are!

He told the BBC: "Due to an error of judgement in accepting advice from the fees office I have let a lot of people down."

 

But surely these people know the fundamental differences between what's right and what's blatantly obviously wrong in their own minds???

 

Incredibly it's been the major defense in most of these cases..."the system said it was okay, so..."

 

The b******s that have taken any immoral benefit should be stripped of their positions, named and shamed.

Let's face it, our government is a shambles. Heck, my next-door neighbour (in fact, anyone could) probably run the country better than these "qualified" assholes.

growing public anger , the police are being called in to investigate some characters claims.

 

GOOD

the scale of this is still becoming apparent with one twat claiming 16k... yes SIXTEEN THOUSAND POUNDS that he wasnt entitled too for a house that was paid for... ffs... JAIL THE CNUT.

 

this makes moaning about benefits cheats very hard to balance...

 

the police should be brought in and everyone should be convicted IF they have done wrong... no appology is sufficient, paying back monies yes...WITH INTEREST (as i have to if my tax is late).

 

this sleaze is party wide and is utterly disgusting, jail the worst offenders, sack the pisstakers.

 

100% SPOT ON, this is as clear cut a case of FRAUD as there is if you ask me... If someone on benefits did this and committed benefit fraud, they'd have the full force of the law down on them like a ton of bricks.... NO IFS, NO BUTS as the govt adverts say.... So, why the fukk should MPs just be allowed to get off with a mealy-mouthed apology and pathetic explanation that it was an "accounting error".... FFS..... These buggers seem to think they're better than us, and they shouldn't have to pay their way.... I mean, sorry, but why is it that they are subject to RULES, whereas the rest of us mere mortals are subject to LAWS if we made false claims on taxes (with regards to business expenses) or benefits...? At the end of the day, all three are examples of misappropriation of public funds and should be treated with equal gravity as far as the law is concerned....

 

Now more than ever I am totally convinced that this system of Second Homes and Grace and Favour homes should be SCRAPPED and MPs should be put into Halls of Residence-type accommodation when they're sitting in Parliament (apparently they have a system similar to this in Australia...), or given 'x' amount of money a month to put towards rent or hotel expenses... NO second home allowances, NO 'Grace and Favour'.... And certainly, NO "Flipping" of second homes to make profit.... <_<

 

And, interestingly enough, the Police actually seem to be rather reluctant to look into this... FFS... What the fukk are they actually there for then if NOT to bloody investigate sh!t like this.....? <_< They weren't so reluctant to beat people up at the G20 protests were they....? They weren't so reluctant to turn over Damien Green's offices, and not so reluctant to arrest anti-war protestors in Parliament Square and the Cenotaph...... B/astards...... Who's bloody interests are the Police actually serving in this country.....? Cos it sure as hell aint the interests of the ordinary taxpayer....... AND WE PAY THESE PIGS' FUKKIN WAGES....... :angry: :angry: :angry:

 

 

 

This is all down to MAGGIE THATCHER and the TORIES who brought in this allowances scheme in the early 80's, because of controversy over MPs salarys, so it was sopposed to act as a top up of their salaries, it was deliberatley left up to MPs conscience as to how much and what they claimed for, there was never any SET RULES or LAWS put in place just GUIDELINES. I think PPL are missing the point when they are going on about Fraud, no crime has been comitted or rules broken cause there wasnt any in the first place. Yes there is public anger and quite rightly so over what some MPs have charged taxpayers for. I think David Cameron has dealt with the situation quickly and in the right way by saying MPs must pay the money back or face being sacked. Labour have acted like a bunch of loonies over this showing indesciveness and poor leadership.

 

The worrying thing over all of this is just how many people now TRUST MPs of the three major parties, and with all the anger people feel how are they going to vote in the upcoming european elections, are they gonna boycott the three majors and vote for parties like the BNP (god forbid!!) or the UKIP, who want to take us out of Europe!

Edited May 15, 200916 yr by fiesta

What's also confusing me is why all the attention has been put on those submitting the expenses, not how those expenses came to be accepted and paid?

In most companies, expenses have to be reviewed and authorised by someone higher up the food chain before they are paid. Does this not happen with the MP expenses?

 

The MPs were wrong for submitting them, but why did no-one question them at the time?

What's also confusing me is why all the attention has been put on those submitting the expenses, not how those expenses came to be accepted and paid?

In most companies, expenses have to be reviewed and authorised by someone higher up the food chain before they are paid. Does this not happen with the MP expenses?

 

The MPs were wrong for submitting them, but why did no-one question them at the time?

They are supposed to be checked but the people charged with doing that have made a pretty awful job of it. There are some MPs claiming that the fees office (who are the ones supposed to check the claims) have encouraged them to claim more. Of course, that's still no excuse for some of these claims, merely an explanation of how they got away with it.

The MPs were wrong for submitting them, but why did no-one question them at the time?

 

Maybe those that were responsible for questioning and authorising of payment for, were expense-claimers themselves? This kind of thing has gone on for years and years ... the thing I find shocking is why so many people are shocked about it. I say there should be no 'second-home' allowance. When in London - there are zillions of frigging unoccupied rooms in Buckingham Palace - let the money-grabbing bast*rds stay there with Liz!

 

Norma

 

 

This is all down to MAGGIE THATCHER and the TORIES who brought in this allowances scheme in the early 80's, because of controversy over MPs salarys, so it was sopposed to act as a top up of their salaries, it was deliberatley left up to MPs conscience as to how much and what they claimed for, there was never any SET RULES or LAWS put in place just GUIDELINES. I think PPL are missing the point when they are going on about Fraud, no crime has been comitted or rules broken cause there wasnt any in the first place. Yes there is public anger and quite rightly so over what some MPs have charged taxpayers for. I think David Cameron has dealt with the situation quickly and in the right way by saying MPs must pay the money back or face being sacked. Labour have acted like a bunch of loonies over this showing indesciveness and poor leadership.

 

The worrying thing over all of this is just how many people now TRUST MPs of the three major parties, and with all the anger people feel how are they going to vote in the upcoming european elections, are they gonna boycott the three majors and vote for parties like the BNP (god forbid!!) or the UKIP, who want to take us out of Europe!

 

Labour have had 12 years to change the system :rolleyes:

 

It is all the well ranting about Maggie but she has been out of power nearly 20 years not everything can be laid at her door :manson:

The worrying thing over all of this is just how many people now TRUST MPs of the three major parties, and with all the anger people feel how are they going to vote in the upcoming european elections, are they gonna boycott the three majors and vote for parties like the BNP (god forbid!!) or the UKIP, who want to take us out of Europe!

 

I will personally be voting UKIP if they field a candidate in my area

 

While I am a tory at heart and not voted for any other party before the current leadership is too liberal/centrist for me compared with the golden era of Thatcher/Tebbit/Joseph etc Cameron for me is B-Liar with a blue rossette on and simply not right wing enough

 

I cannot vote for the BNP because I will not vote for a party that is built around violence and thuggery however good some of their policies are and there are many I agree with so UKIP seems a good option, right wing/nationalist but non violent

Edited May 15, 200916 yr by B.A Baracus

When in London - there are zillions of frigging unoccupied rooms in Buckingham Palace - let the money-grabbing bast*rds stay there with Liz!

 

Norma

Best suggestion yet :lol:

Labour have had 12 years to change the system :rolleyes:

 

 

........ again, the tories have had 12 years to oppose it! not once have they done so.. so DONT put the blame squarely at browns feet when it was your beloved maggie who introduced this scam!

 

they are ALL guilty.

........ again, the tories have had 12 years to oppose it! not once have they done so.. so DONT put the blame squarely at browns feet when it was your beloved maggie who introduced this scam!

 

they are ALL guilty.

 

Labour have had a massive majority in parliament particularly in 1997 and 2001 where the majority was well into the hundreds had Blair wanted to he could have passed reforms regardless of what tory MP's felt especially if he used a "three line whip"

I know my MP has been caught up in the scandal, but i'll be revoting him in, because he's by far the best option.

 

I will not vote Torrie, Labour, SNP or Greens which Leaves me with Lib Dem, good thing i agree with their policies.

TBH I find this a bit of a non-story and my wife feels the same. I really couldn't care less if they've been fiddling or not. Let's face it, eeryone fiddles in every walk of life. I bet all you lot criticising aren't whiter then white yourselves. Just jumping on the proverbial bandwagon really.