The vote on Thursday night not to fix the broken system of MP’s expenses was a disgrace; it was the kind of behaviour that brings politics into disrepute. It was mostly Labour MPs who blocked this change with 33 ministers and Brown’s bag carriers voting for the wrecking amendment despite the Prime Minister himself suggesting that he backed reform. Today, Peter Oborne goes some way to explaining how this happened:
The key to understanding [Brown’s] position is the fact that Thursday’s vote on expenses followed an earlier one which involved the equally controversial issue of MPs’ pay. Facing a backbench revolt from Labour MPs who were furious at what they saw as an insulting increase in their £61,000 salary, the Prime Minister was forced to concede them a free vote on the expenses issue in return for accepting the deal on pay. Brown knew that defeat on this vital question would have been even more embarrassing and have had a catastrophic impact on the entire government economic policy of trying to keep a tight lid on public service pay awards. In other words, Labour MPs were told that in return to agreeing to a very small rise in their official salary, they were free to carry on fiddling their expenses. This shabby compromise proved acceptable to the rebels, and Gordon Brown’s public sector wages negotiations remain on course. But I fear that he will pay a heavy long-term cost for such low and debased politics.
As Peter argues, this deal gives Cameron a real opportunity to draw clear dividing lines between the Tories and Labour on the issue. The Tories should commit to radical reforms designed to bring true transparency into the system.
PS Apologies for comments not appearing and the lack of photos at the moment, we’re suffering from an infuriating set of technical problems—apparently, the alternative data centre has blown up. I’ll let you know as soon as the techs give us a time frame for when all this will be fixed. Apologies again and thanks for bearing with us.
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