Drawing a line under the expenses row?
Two of the Bexhill Observer's headlines last week speak volumes about Greg Barker.
The first, dated 15th May, reads 'MP: I Won't Pay It Back', while the second, posted on the paper's website a few hours later, says 'Greg Barker to pay 10,000+ capital gains tax'.
This astonishing u-turn demonstrates how lightly Barker initially took the accusations against him, before presumably being ordered from 'on high' in the Conservative Party to pay the tax that everyone else would have had to pay in the same situation.
The crisis has led to a real lack of confidence in our politicians, and I'm afraid that repayment's like Barker's seem cynical as they come so late.
Having said that, I'm pleased Greg has decided to pay back this money. And he is certainly not alone as an MP who has taken too long to take this situation seriously. But what is needed now, if politicians are to regain the trust of the public, is a far more transparent system, which reflects the actual costs to MPs of doing their jobs. There should be no financial perks which could not be expected in a comparable job in the 'real world'.
The three major parties appear to have agreed a way forward, and I hope that the extraordinary events of this week will begin to draw a line under the chaos we have seen of late. Parliament is an institution that should be respected, but its Members still have some way to go before the public feel that is again the case.
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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