The real scandal is that we always, always end up paying

Andy

Time to convene Harriet Harman's court of public opinion, methinks!

Chris L

And as allowances, don't forget it is tax-free money. So Jacqui Smith's £150k equals £250k for you and me; McNulty's £60k equals over £100k for you and me. I am a middle aged, middle class male working in the City for my family, school fees and mortgage and I cannot begin to tell you how angry I am and just how utterly helpless I feel. Quis custodiet ipsos custodes indeed. There is nobody to whom we can turn for fairness in this; the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner is widely regarded as a poodle (hence his appointment).

Terra firma

By the way, anybody seen Martin Bell since his days of confronting corruption on Tatton Common?

Boris Johnson and Johnson

why is your last name a supermarket?

TomTom

A taxpayer-funded employee of the MP for Redditch lives in a taxpayer-funded house and expenses to the taxpayer cable TV subscriptions which include pay-per-view porn.

Is this an acceptable practice in the public sector for employees to live in taxpayer funded housing and expense everyday living costs to the taxpayer ?

It would be interesting to know if this practice is widespread in say the BBC, the NHS, Local Government, the Foreign Office, treasury, or any of the State-controlled Banks...perhaps Chequers is used in a similar vein ?

Dixon

Brilliant as usual. The sense of splenetic outrage seething through the text is so refreshing.

I would however caution against so much banging on about "weird". I get called that everywhere I go, by students and other callow, narrow-minded individuals mainly, based on nothing but some subtleties of my appearance. So I would say such language is aking to a kind of racism.

My real disgust is not at the cost of these people but the hypocrisy. Smith is presiding over the introduction of new law restricting pornography and erotica, telling tens of thousands of people what they are henceforth not allowed to look at and that they will go down on the sex-offenders register alongside rapists and paedo's if they DO look at...images still perfectly legal in all free societies. Yet she allows this to go on in her own home!

McNulty was previously in charge of harrassing benefit claimants and took every opportunity to appear on TV threatening the lot of em for fiddling the system, then it turns out he claims more than a dole-recipient would have to live on in a life-time.

But all this is really only the tip of an iceberg isnt it?

WHY are there so many unnecessary government contracts? A programme to knock down and replace EVERY school in the country! The banning of incandescent lighbulbs obliging us to buy someones "energy-saving" alternative product. All the immense and unnecessary IT projects.

WHO is profiting by all of this and how?

Hereford

Vintage stuff Rod.

Andrew Corrie

Oh, Rod! You have put it all so well! Fantastic. Will anything change?

George Steiner

But you are a bunch of mugs.

GK

I agree. She should pay for the art movies out off her own wallet.

MikeF

The fact that at 4.15pm as I am writing this there have been no responses to this article so far would seem to vindicate the point that an utterly shameless politician can simply brazen out a situation like this. All they need to do is wait a few days until the public becomes bored with the whole thing and then they can go back to filing their expenses claims as before - well not quite I am sure 'Mr Smith' will pay for his own porn in future. The fact is that Jacqui Smith has been revealed as a venal, self-serving mediocrity and there is nothing anybody can do about it.

But here is a thought. If Ms Smith is booted out by her constituents at the next General Election and if, as is supposed, her name is then put forward for a life peerage would the Prime Minister of the day be able to veto the move? If so and if that Prime Minister is David Cameron then even if it is against all precedent and convention would he do so? He would get my vote at the next General Election but one if he did.

James

As a man I have for some time wondered what kind of men the husband of these nulabour female robot clones must be like be (I mean the likes of Smith, Harman, Jowell, and that loathsome one who represents somewhere in east london whose name fortunately escapes me. They all merge into one a bit...

Thankfully in the case of Jowell & Smith it is now thankfully obvious.

I wonder what Harmans chap is like...(assuming she has one, I don't know)

Its tempting to have some sympathy for him, but I suspect he isn't deserving of any.

Jez

Listen to this;

Timney was in his front room when he heard tap tap on his front room window.

It was the refuse collector;

"Where's y bin mate?"

"Er, i've been here." Timney replied finding it hard to hear clearly through the glass

"No, where's y bin r kid?"

"I SAID I'VE BEEN IN HERE!" Timney once more replied, now a little unsettled.

"WHERE'S Y BLOODY BIN YOU NUTTER!" the bin man shouted back, now quite irate.

Timney quickly shot to the door. He opened it whilst looking if anyone was in earshot and whispered;

"ok, ok. I've really been haveing a w**k!"

Bill Thomas

Excellent piece. By the way, does anybody know whether Mr Timney actually does anything in return for his money? Presumably the Home Secretary - so fond of running our lives - would wish to publish an annual appraisal of her staff?

Jez

Come the revolution Rod!

It won't be long now, the Anarchist legions have descended to the capitol... they have taken to the streets... they have... er, smashed one window at a bank?

*D'OH!*

John Savage

Hi Rod,

Here is something else to consider………

While I can accept that we still need a Parliament, a Cabinet, a Home Secretary (though perhaps not the incumbent) and an opposition I can’t accept that we need over 600 sheep to be kept and cared for.

With, according to some estimates, over 80% of the legislation originating in Brussels and the fact they have to toe the party line on any substantive matter what good are they? What are they for? What do they accomplish? Surely the number of MPs could be easily reduced to match their reduced profile and responsibility.

I suggest we reduce the head count by one third immediately and consider whether further pruning is required in 6 years or so. There should be no complaints; after all they are (with very few exceptions) staunchly in favour of the EU and outsourcing for all other industries so it is probably time for them to move with the times as well.

Look at it another way; they have outsourced their responsibilities to Brussels now the British taxpayer should expect some savings.

Regards

M.G. Stevenson

Mr. Liddle's use of the word 'fatboy' is denigrating and unnecessary, however odious the person so described is. His using it reveals much more about the kind of person he is than it does about the person of whom he speaks, since he does so because of some physical feature. Is Mr. Liddle the judge of who is 'fat'? He abuses others as well. Is Mr. Liddle perfect in physique? This is school yard stuff and certainly not the stuff of a byline writer for The Spectator and The Times.

Ben Elford

Wow: quite a blast. But we could all enjoy the same benefits presently enjoyed only by honourable members and their families. Apparently there's a round trillion pounds available now, and to set the ball rolling I've petitioned the PM to introduce measures to distribute bath plugs to all hardworking families in the interests of fairness.

I see this as the best way of defusing the understandable anger against Jacqui Smith. Obviously, other measures could be introduced along the same lines: Habitat sinks, antique fireplaces, payment for sitting at home writing letters to the local paper ...

Jason Dack

Christ, Smith and McNulty are complete bastards. Copper-plated bastards of the highest order. We, the taxpayer, are openly treated with complete and utter contempt. There is no hope left.

rod liddle

Are you a bit tubby, or something, MG?

John Savage

Here is something else to consider………

While I can accept that we still need a Parliament, a Cabinet, a Home Secretary (though perhaps not the incumbent) and an opposition I can’t accept that we need over 600 sheep to be kept and cared for.

With, according to some estimates, over 80% of the legislation originating in Brussels and the fact they have to toe the party line on any substantive matter what good are they? What are they for? What do they accomplish? Surely the number of MPs could be easily reduced to match their reduced profile and responsibility.

I suggest we reduce the head count by one third immediately and consider whether further pruning is required in 6 years or so. There should be no complaints; after all they are (with very few exceptions) staunchly in favour of the EU and outsourcing for all other industries so it is probably time for them to move with the times as well.

Look at it another way; they have outsourced their responsibilities to Brussels now the British taxpayer should expect some savings.

Wilhelm

Rod Piddle

Where the hell is my comment ? it was a masterpiece, kid.

Archie

Keep hammering the fatties Rod, mate!

Anita

Brilliant. Exposing these deeply insalubrious people to public scorn and ridicule is just about the only 'justice' we can expect. If the rule of law were operating we could expect them to be forced to repay their ill-gotten gains and be forced from office and into prison. Fat chance.

John Kidd

The degrees of venality and corruption of which Mr Liddle writes far exceed the sleaze of the latter days of John Major's government and which Tony Blair promised to end. There was a time when most MPs of whatever party lived up to and therefore justified their status as "honourable", or "right honourable" in the case of Privy Councillors (such as Home Secretaries) members. Shamefully, particularly for a Conservative Party whose critical claws have apparently been blunted by a similar infection, it would seem that those days have now gone. Indeed, the facts outlined by Mr Liddle, if true, causes one to question why they are apparently
not yet the subject of police investigation. Although I live in Australia (a country not itself immune, though on a smaller scale, to political chicanery) I comment as one who many years ago held minor office, at constituency level, in the UK Conservative Party and had the pleasure to meet MPs who were indeed honourable members.

Lydia P Troyer

I think you really will get further with "undecided" voters by banging away about how the average politico takes the herd for mugs because they all, Trotski or Tory, think they're cleverer than everyone else, so of course they think they deserve whatever "perqs" come their way. Most other clever folk are too busy living life to get involved with politics, local or otherwise. So spotlighting the obvious excesses does sway opinion where reasoned argument fails to persuade. Like slowing down to gawk at an accident, negative political stories attract the curious, it's a guilty satisfaction of knowing. Whether we should chuck people out because of their "moral" lapses rather than just their legislative history & effectiveness is an old dilemma. Working people vote their interest, not their philosophies; only academics and others insulated from the consequences vote on theories.

Jez

Wilhelm;

Join the club mate, i can't believe mine didn't get on too.

Cutting edge, witty, humerous it was all that- and some!

I'm contemplating taking the easy road and making a t*** of me self on our lasses facebook page instead.

Your loss Spectator, your loss!

:)))))

pewkatchoo

So while Jaqui Smith was away playing the honorable member, her husband was at home playing with his honorable member. The mind boggles.

coralsoft

We are not worthy, we are not worthy!

Truly a rant of Aerosmithian proportions that should be forced upon a wider audience than just the Spectarors. I'm glad someone spread the link.

This sort of information should be hammered home to the electorate to the point where they can turn to the system and say 'None of The Above'.

Simon Stephenson

Are no comments made before 10.37 yesterday evening to be accepted?

Antonio

A great a superb quality of jornalistic article. If the Police fail to prosecute them, then our society and democratic values are in peril.

Bill Thomas

So it was not just my superb entry that was turned down, then? What's up, Speccie??

rod liddle

Gents (and the twat Wilhelm)

- I think the speccie has had a few problems posting comments recently. I don't think any deliberate censroship will have been involved.
Thanks for all comments, kind and otherwise.

Brian

‘Weirdo goateed onanist required to spend evenings alone in Worcestershire outpost of the West Midlands. Salary £40k plus unlimited expenses. Must have the ability to knock one out every so often at the taxpayer’s expense and be married to Jacqui Smith.’

Excellent!

Pete Hoskin

Rod and others: yep, apologies, there have been some problems with comments. Our techies have fixed them now, and I've gone back and approved comments that didn't make it up yesterday.

Wilhelm

Rod Piddle

I know we have had our differences recently, but I can give you my complete assurance I've
still got the greatest enthusiasm and confidence in the Spectator.

I'm glad to hear the Spectator website is back to operational level, and all its circuits are functioning perfectly. Thanks for sharing.

Charles Smyth

One could get worked up about the mugs, if the same mugs weren't running amok in London and demanding that the government--aka themselves in the long run--must donate hundreds of millions to support the vast corruption in Africa and AfPakistan, for example. It's no wonder that Karzai and Mugabe sleep easy at night, when an 88p bath plug is such a distraction. A good remedy would be to reduce Parliament to about 25% of its current contingent.

John Walter

And this same bunch of Westminster trough snouts have tirelessly pointed out for decades how those dreadful Communist leaders helped themselves to luxury living at the workers' expense. You see, they said, all that graft proves that democracy is better and those Commies plain bad and greedy.
There is no difference between them is there.

Ted Marr

Rod - I find your piece depressing in the extreme. I have long thought that they were corrupt & creepy, but I had never imagined just how corrupt & creepy they were. Let's try to rise above Jacqui Smith, who is obviously a small-time low-life in a high position. More importantly, can anyone ever take Gordon Brown seriously even for a minute?

Basingstokeboy

Rod you can "eff & blind" in an article (with justification) and get published but I who did not cannot!
What is going on please?

rod liddle

Dixon - upon reflection, yes, I think you're right. For all the reasons you suggest, "weirdo" was wrong. Apologies.

Chingford Man

Rod, you forgot to mention that Harry Cohen also claims for a caravan on Mersea Island where he walks his dog Rosa (named after Rosa Luxemburg). Difficult to see how you need it and a house in Colchester to represent a London Zone 3 seat, but there you go.

I wish Martin Bell would consider whether he would like to be an MP again. Harry's majority is only 7000 odd.

Eccles

Excellent rant, Rod. And what has happened about Lord Taylor etc., in the House of Lords, who received sweeteners (sorry - "fees") for getting amendments to legislation passed?

ann summers

Rod you forgot to enlighten readers that Jaqui Smith's husband also spends time writing letters to the local paper in praise of hthe local MP. Needless to say he uses his surname Timney with no reference to the fact that he is her husband. A clear case of the tax payer funding party politicking me thinks.

Rob Slack

Is there a reason why everything I try to post to the Spectator is blocked?

David Short

Mike F. said:"The fact that at 4.15pm as I am writing this there have been no responses to this article so far would seem to vindicate the point that an utterly shameless politician can simply brazen out a situation like this. "

No, it's not that. It's bad website software and management by the Speccie.

Last week, all the responses to RL's article were absent for a while even tho there had been many.

I think it's because RL's get the most responses and the Speccie 'webmasters' didn't think any piece would ever get so much bombardment.

Jeffrey Bernard used to be the best thing in the Speccie. Now RL is. But without taking too much away from that accolade, I'd add that RL has less competition than did Jeff B.

Some of the people the new owners let in here are dire...

As for MG, I am sure he is a bit tubby. I am very overweight but do not feel I have the right to be offended by any 'fatboy' remark.

I am fat through my own self-indulgence and I welcome opprobrium as another impetus to solve the problem.

It's not like I'm being insulted or suffering from prejudice. If I were black, I might feel insulted to be cursed simply for being black, which would be something I did not cause and could not 'solve'.

But being fat; that's my fault, and I could change it if I tried.

Racism should be abhorred, but fattism should be encouraged.

Rebecca

Mugabe/ZANU thieves and murderers. Saddam/Batthists thieves and murderers.
Kim Jong il/ N Korean Comm' thieves and murderers.
Brown/Labour ...well you tell me in view of what has hapened in Iraq and now this sleaze explosion. What right has the UK govt to lecture anyone about anything.

jon livesey

I think there is a deep reason why Labour appear to take the voters for mugs. That is that from its inception the Socialist movement has seen itself as leading the proletariat, not as being part of it.

In the UK we see this in the form of "labour" politicians riding around in limousines, while in the old USSR, at least when I lived there, the Party even went so far as to award itself a special currency "valuta" which could be used to buy goods not available to ordinary people, in special stores with police guards that ordinary people were not even allowed into.

"People power" means using the people to gain power, not giving power to the people.

David Taylor

My, my....what a lot of wankers you have in the British Government. I thought we had some weirdos in New Zealand but your lot...wow!

David Rolla

I thought it was understood - these people are paid to set the laws, not live by them. As Ms. Helmsley wisely said, "Taxes are for little people"

Rod Hunt

This is the best article on MP's expenses that I have read. The sense of pure outrage as to all aspects of this ghastly behaviour is fully justified. Please try and get an even wider audience for this piece.

Peter Saunders

Yes, but what are we going to DO about it? This wretched woman is the Home Secretary, for heaven's sake, in charge of law and order (and the nation's morals). Can't Rod use his good offices with the Spectator, the Sunday Times and others to open a national petition demanding that she resigns? To hell with bankers' bonuses, this is much worse, and they're going to get away with it if we let them.

Alison C

Why do we the tax payer have to buy her and her unlovely husband a stone sink @500 quid.
The 88p for the plug seems a positive bargain, in comparison!

Why?

Mike Mitchell

Sounds like you're angry, Rod, just as most of us, I am certain, are. But even your use of the partially redacted ****ing expletive, which adds tenor to your ire, your piece will fail to make even a crease, let alone a dent, in the Jacqui Smith demeanour. She, McNulty and all the other four legs good tossers that pass for the British government will just ignore everything you say, then introduce further Draconian legislation in a week or two to further curtail our freedom and civil liberties. The idea of mandatory CCTV in our homes is already being tossed around. See, I said they were a bunch of tossers, didn't I?

Twelve years of New Labour has seen the disintegration of Britain. There are too many people now saying it for it not to be true. You are having yet another go at pointing it out, but you'd spend more fruitful a time rearranging your furniture in readiness for the telescreens.

Kifue

Well, lets face it guys... UK VOTED FOR THEM. Not once, but THREE TIMES!!

WHO voted for these clowns? Who? It was quite apparent within a year, how useless and ghastly they were. The BBC turned into the english version of SABC - instead of some thick-voiced Afrikaner coming on and saying 'Good Evening. The Minister says [more thoughtspeak on fearing and hating blacks], Labour luvvies George Alaghaia and Fatboy Scot (Radio 4) would start every single news bulletin with 'Good evening. Tony Blair says'. Every single one. Difference, anyone?

But I suppose you had to have grown up in a sick country to see it. The lies incompetence and propaganda -sorry, 'spin' - were there from the start.

You just didn't notice.

Jez

Wahay!!!

My comments have appeared.

Cheers Speccie.

At mo' can't prise the missus off SKY news with this Goody funeral business!

Sort it Rod. Sort it!

teledu

Kifue - the English DIDN'T vote for this bunch, it's thanks to the jocks and our first-past-the-post system that they got a 3rd term. More votes in England were cast for the Conservatives than zanuLabour at the last election. Blame the jocks!!

CharlieRay15

Great article about a thoroughly depressing issue.

Ian

Timney is often referred to as a 'man', when he clearly isn't. He sits at home, watching porn, writing bent letters to the local rag and fiddling expenses. He sits at home while his wife goes out to work. That's not a man, that's a pet, I think you'll find.

Though 'weirdo' will do.

Matthew Gwyther

i'm sorry but this is a piece of pure genius. Swift wd have approved

Frank P

Rod

An honest answer to a straight question, please: who did you vote for in the last three General Elections?

Paul Cheevers

It is not the beefy haus frau's craven apology that offends,it is the background picture of pornnographic thinking. The awful pap films chosen for nearly teenage children, the giant plasma screens, the Sky subsctiption, a vulgarity worthy of a sink estate. And as the most overpaid aupair in history (£800 smackeroonies a week)makes his sad plea for mercy, the barely glimpsed children peering out at their father was a moment to make us despair at the stupidity of human kind. For sheer grossnss the Home Secretary's househiold is up there with the Osbournes. And she leads us?

A. MacAulay

Well paid people steal in Office and in the office for various reasons, very often as a sort of revenge or compensation for being overseen or misunderstood in some way. In every case though, and especially where the thievery has become endemic and wholesale as in our Parliament (where theivery is really nothing new and knavery neither)the root cause is bad management! Also, not every person who is in a position to steal without really getting caught does so. I would think that the majority of people don't steal even though nothing about them is nailed down, but I think nearly every one will start to steal if they see that their superiors are helping themselves. New Labour is thoroughly corrupt and rotten from the top.

David Cameron must give his MP's an amnesty in order to get their houses in order and let it be clearly understood the he has a signed but undated resignation in his drawer for all caught with their fingers in the Till after that date and no mercy or hardship cases.

Lastly, for all who like to hold the "jocks" responsible for London being a den of iniquity, GROW UP! Jocks make their way to London, as a MacAulay said, "to wash their hands in the golden fountain" because London is a den of iniquity. So we won't wash our hands if you will wash your face.

rod liddle

97 labour
01 lib dem
05 lib dem

Archie Wedderspoon

I live in Australia, and on the front page of the Weekly Telegraph was a photograph of Richard Timney. A more obvious onanist I have never seen, and it is interesting that this was also the reaction of several of my friends. I think this will be his real punishment.

Old Man

Sorry Andy 2April 12.00

Public opinion is a BAD, BAD thing.

We have that on the authority of MPs generally plus Matthew Parris no less.

On the “This Week” programme Diana Abbott made the same point – democracy is not for the common people. She said that if Britain was a democracy and governments were obliged to take notice of “Public Opinion” we would not have accepted mass immigration?

Just goes to show how stupid the British people can be.

Face it Andy, the likes of you and me are far too dim-witted to be listened to. And luckily for us, we definitely are not going to be listened to, whatever happens.

Just be grateful we have Diane Abbott to put us right and the lovely Jacqui Smith to rip us off.

Wilhelm

So there you have it folks. Rod Piddle voted 97 times for labour at the general election.

Vote early, vote often, eh Rod ?

Ian

I feel sorry for their two little ones, having to have a dad like that. Not much of a role model, is he? He won't be able to say to them, as they gaze up at him with their beaming little faces, 'I was a great hero of the Labour movement, boys'. He won't be able to tell them he struggled on behalf of ordinary people, and perhaps made life a bit better for some. No, when they ask him that immortal question, 'what did you do during the Labour government daddy?' all he will be able to say is: 'well son, I stayed at home and fiddled my expenses, and wrote some dishonest letters to the newspaper. Oh, and I watched a lot of porn too.'

How ignoble, how sad and how utterly pathetic. The man ought to get up off his backside and do something decent with his life.

Wilhelm

Old Man

Is that the same odious hypocritical Diane Abbot who sends her kids to private school but voted against us sending our children to private
school ?

Talking of mass immigration into Britain, it was a waste of time fighting the war , wasnt it ? since the countries being invaded by riff raff.

Henry Wood

All you people complaining about Mr. Liddle calling the fat husband of the fat Home Secretary fat, ought really to be asking why he did not use her proper name: Jacqui 'Five Bellies' Smith.

Nick Chambers

Brilliant article Rod! Why are we so apathetic about it? We should be storming the gates of parliament. If everyone complained to the police, maybe they'd have to take action? Surely it's their duty to investigate these brazen cases of fraud?

Old Man

Wilhelm – Yep that’s right; you know - the grotesque looking one.

But as usual everyone is missing the point.

The point is - all of our public services are corrupt. It’s not just the politicians. They are all rotten to the core.

Unfortunately our press and broadcast media, which are supposed to be the eyes and ears of the people, are populated (perhaps necessarily) by people of “artist” temperament (not a euphemism) and whose understanding of the world is therefore somewhat limited and confused. So confused that many believe that “targets” are ruining education, the police, and the NHS etc. but they are wrong.

It’s not the targets; it’s the corruption.

For example: hospital managers know that they can treat nine people with sore fingers inside the four hour limit, but not if interrupted by a tenth man with a heart attack. So they treat the sore fingers first and claim a creditable 90 percent success rate.

Meanwhile people die. By the hundred it seems; and they are dying because corrupt management manipulate procedures to produce the required statistics.

Jacqui Smith is just a bog-standard government worker doing what government workers do best. They manipulate, or to put it another way; they lie and they cheat.

By the way I have an answer for those in government worrying about the pension shortfall in the public services.

Just do what Equitable Life did.

Just before I retired they wrote to say “We don’t have as much money as we thought. Your pension fund to which you have contributed for all those decades is cut by a third. Sorry about that. Yours sincerely”.

Just write something similar to all those government workers.

Job done.

Jez

Eh?

01 LibDems??!!

It wasn't even going all that 'tits up' for you lot back then.

Iraq 03 was the primary 'head scratcher' for most who'd been NuLab wasn't it?

Apart from that Cable bloke (who genuinly seems to try his best) the Lib Dems seem all over the place. (as an opinion only)

Come on, what on earth can the Lib Dems do to help the present crisis?

Personally i've gained through this massive credit flowing bubble this last 9 years- but now it's teetering on collapse, the lot of us are staring into a pretty catastrophic abyss.

They want to build houses to create jobs, to make houses more affordable?

What with? More taxes? Print more money?

If you read their website they're (again, as an opinion only) actually contadicting their own official stances as the months pass (?)... and it seems their opinions almost exactly match the general sanctioned concensous that is being spewed out of the mainstream media.

Maybe just before the 1st world war this country could afford to have some lapsidaisicle dreamboaters blowing about in the wind- but it's not then and we only seem to have one solution being handed to us by the machine;

-borrow more to buy in more foreign crap.

At least *try* and balance the books for goodness sake.

Jez

Could someone answer this;

A quite intelligent guy (he has letters after his name and runs his own consultancy) told me that if the government had paid off everone's mortgage in the country- thus freeing up everyones mortgage payments, then the boost in the economy would also drive us out of resession. This in theory would have cost a little less or the same than the billion upon billion 'bail outs' of the banks but the banks would have still been knackered. So they bailed out the banks instead so they'd make short term on making loads long term.

Is this;

a, a load of old bollocks

b, true.

Data please anyone?

James R

A masturful performance.

Jez

Could i try that one again;

if the government had paid off everyones mortgage in the UK- thus freeing up everyones mortgage payments, then the boost in the economy would drive us out of resession.

This in theory would have cost a little less (or the same) than the billion upon billion 'bail outs' that we've pumped into the banking system.

The banks would have been worse off long term and wouldn't be in a position to reap in the long term massive interest payments....

Is this;

a, a load of old bollocks

b, true.

Vaemar

Read Dennis Whealey's 1936 novel "Black August." It may be closer than many people think.

Fingal

Labour and the Lib-Dems are beyond hope. The Tories are, with a few exceptions, little or no better, and Cameron's failure to prosecute this scandal vigorously has compromised him badly as a possible national leader. Ukip has no real political traction. Doesn't leave a political party to support, does it? ... Does it?

Mike Mitchell

97 labour
01 lib dem
05 lib dem

Me too! Exactly the same. I will rue my '97 vote for evermore.

James

A song that is very much of the nulab generation......

If you're going to West Minster
Be sure to claim expenses everywhere
If you're going to West Minster
You're gonna meet some dodgy people there

For those who come to West Minster
Second homes will be a golden lair
In the streets of West Minster
Lucky people claiming without care

All across the nation such a strange vibration
Jacqui Smith’s husband in motion
There's a whole generation full of exasperation
Jacqui Smith’s in motion Jacqui Smith in motion!

For those who come to West Minster
Be sure to claim expenses everywhere
If you come to West Minster
Second homes will be a golden lair

If you come to West Minster
Second homes will be a golden lair

MikeF

An interesting attempt to reinvent all this from the left-liberal standpoint by Jackie Ashley in today's Guardian. She writes, amongst other things:

"all parties face a new threat - general anger at self-serving elites whose claims to wisdom are bust and whose behaviour is under new scrutiny... The wind is rising, and the mob is assembling."

In other words she admits the venality of many of our elected representatives, but - as with Ms Abbott quoted here earlier - can't refrain from a certain disdain for the idea that such people should comply with the sort of standards that apply to the rest of us. Indeed we are just a "mob".

Paul

What is the problem with Mr Jacqui Smith viewing 'Anal Boutique' and 'Lesbian Lavatory Lust'? The latter may have been recreational, but the former is surely an essential piece of research in working out how to give the taxpayer another one up the tradesman's entrance. One now knows why an ex-MP came to front a game show with the immortal catchphrase of 'Share or Shaft'.

Nicholas Storey

Spot on Rodders; you are the Bernard Levin of your time. One thing that strikes me as oddly over-looked is that David Mills has gone to prison for accepting a bribe from Berlesconi but it is perfectly acceptable to the world that Berlosconi should be invited to lunch by Jamie Oliver. But of course, Berlosconi is one step ahead of all of them - he legislates for his own immunity from prosecution for fraud.

Marc O'Polo

Rod - You appear to have tapped a seam old bean! (Who'd have thought it?!)

HolyroodPatter

Terra Firma,
Martin Bell does occasionally have a dig at mps expenses, and along with snp mp angus macneil uncoverd the cash for honours inquiry(read:whitewash)

Is there a better candidate for John Lyons job?

Salvatore

All true, and well observed, but there is much more to be made of this.

How does Ms Smith think her claims would be received by Ms Harmans Court of Public Opinion, and would she be prepared to donate her profits to charity?

Is there any good reason why each MPs allowances and expenses figures should not accompany their election literature.

And no-one has yet exposed MPS quite extraordinarily favourable pension arrangements.

Wilhelm

Rod Piddle squeeks '' Wilhelm is a twat.''

Are you quite sure ?

Dwight Vandryver

Surely the point of the article is this: it is the MPs attitude of mind that if it can possibly be claimed on the swindle sheet, it will be, since the electorate have no say in the matter. And the attitude of mind persists to public spending. So while this article deplores the odd million claimed immorally, if not illegally, it fails to make the connection to the billions wasted in the public sector generally that springs from the same mentality. If MPs were concerned about the rising costs to the taxpayer, they would be taking a more active interest in government expenditure.
For instance, New Labour's stated aim is to generate 40% of the electricity demand from renewables by 2020. Has any MP asked the question: what is the cost to the consumer going to be in order to be a world leader in saving the planet? No. The assumption is that whatever the cost, MPs know best and we, the mugs, will have to foot the bill, regardless of the ability to pay.