apparently it cost £1.1m to produce the report into mp's expenses claims… astounding… it's not even on glossy paper!

Its beyond belief.

What really gets me is how divorced from reality most of the MPs became. Not just feathering their nests but not realising how it is viewed by the public. The lack of contrition is astounding – and Brown let Callmedave off the hook on it because of this total failure to understand.

Holyrood had the same issues ( on a smaller scale) – sorted out in a few week to everyone's satisfaction. No more second homes – you are allowed to rent or Hotel – whichever is cheaper and all expenses no matter how small need receipts and are published in full. scandal over.

exactly, or better still, put them all in one block of flats apartments.

i saw an mp on the news last night claim that she "was as honest as she could be" wtf does that mean?

And based on them paying back £1m (an average of £1500 apiece), how many more times has the 'whole' enquiry cost?

This is what really pisses me off, not the 'abuse' but the reality that we've people in charge with no concept of the value/cost of money – OUR MONEY!

with no concept of the value/cost of money – OUR MONEY!

TBH – I couldn't give 2 figs about the money
It's not about the money but they seem to have totally failed to grasp this – all the false contrition & cheque waving video bites just piss me off more
they really don't get it do they?

but if you did care about the money…. you might be interested to learn that they had ALREADY paid back 800k before the report.

so the report finding 1.12M due, actually found just over three hunderd grand owing. and cost us nearly one point two million.

brilliant.

but it's ok because we, the people, will vote out all the mp's who have been dishonest/immoral to be replaced by good, honest, salt of the earth types more dishonest and corrupt candidates, looking to feather their own nests at our expense.

yay!

Does anyone know who the six are who are up before the beak with regards to possible prosecution by the CPS?

I wouldn't actually mind about the all the expense fiddling going on if they were actually any good at their job.

If they had stopped us from going to Iraq just because Tony fancied himself as a big shot, or had stopped the ID card thing, or even the madness of the Cambridge Guided Busway, then it would seem like money well spent.

But they didn't. Which makes it all very hard to defend.

What boils my piddle is that they had the audacity to try and work the system in the first place! The position of MP is not one to be taken lightly, they are in a position of great trust and responsibility. The mindset of the type of person who would try and wrangle every possible expense is not suited to the position. To me, they're no better than benefit cheats.

I do not want some low-life snake looking after my interests…..

Oh. My MP is the delightful Alan Duncan. 😐

CF, MPs Elliot Morley, Jim Devine, David Chaytor and Lord Hanningfield will face charges under the Theft Act.

it is just petty nonsense.

there was a woman mp on yesterday (sorry have forgotten name) who was in hot water as she had paid her son in law rent for 18months for living in his house.

she was complaining as this wasnt against the rules at the time etc. etc. which she would never *dream* of breaking…. (rules re. renting off family members came in the year after)

but SURELY she can see that paying an elevated rent to your own family, then claiming it back off the tax payer isnt exactly highly moral… even if it doesnt technically break the rules?

I've got a pitch fork in the shed and can quickly rustle up a flaming torch…. Anyone up for forming a rabble?

Nothing for Uddin? Assume she's the one still under investigation. I'd have thought she was the most bang to rights of all of them!

if julie kirkbride and her husband have got to pay back 60 odd grand, just how much were they claiming in the first place, on top of their salaries?

and, when it all came out last year one mp (can't remember his name) even claimed for a yorkie bar! wtf? the rest of society have to use their wages to buy luxuries, it seems mp's don't need to touch theirs wages at all!

Just watching Jim Devine being interviewed on C4, it's like listening to Father Ted explain how the money was just resting in his account 🙂

Jim Devine's charge mentions using 'false invoices'
So he actually forged invoices in order to diddle his expenses

Wonderful!

transcript here

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/politics/domestic_politics/devine+i+have+done+nothing+wrong/3527842

What a dick. Doesn't deserve to be in parliament on the basis of that, guilty of any frauds or not

To me, they're no better than benefit cheats.

To me, they are benefit cheats !

Worse than benefit cheats. Most benefit cheats make a few quid to bring poverty to slightly less poverty, These chancer were on multiples of the national average and still cheated

I was cringing watching the Jim Devine interview.

Cannon fodder.