Ideas: No rules on MPs expenses

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Ideas: No rules on MPs expenses

28.10.2009 // by Guest

This idea comes from Ian in Glasgow:

What's the big idea?:

I'd like to propose a radical change to the rules on MP's expenses; there should be no rules. MP's should simply submit what they themselves consider to be a reasonable claim for whatever expenses they believe themselves to have incurred legitimately in the curse of doing their job along with a statement justifying their claim. All claims and justifications should be published - perhaps a brief summary and the MP's justification in print/the local press and the full version online and/or in constituency libraries.

Why is this change is important to you?:

In the recent expenses scandals we have heard many MP's complaining that they did not break any rules. They have completely missed the point. We expect out MP's to be able to make decisions, not blindly follow rules. If we don't like the decisions they make then we have the power to vote them out. It has already been proposed that constituents should have the power of recall which we could use if sufficient constituents were dissatisfied with an MP's expenses claim or the justification given.

The current proposals by Sir Christopher Kelly will do nothing to increase public confidence. It's just an attempt to limit MP's expenses to non-embarassing items in order to avoid further scandals in the future. The result will be to set democracy back over a hundred years to the time when only wealthy individuals became MPs. The only other likely candidates will be those happy to blindly follow a set of rules without bothering to take the time to consider evidence, think for themselves and make informed, intelligent decisions - exactly the sort of people we don't want.