Tuesday 12 May 2009

Should We Pay For Housekeepers And Flat Cleaners?

I think today's Telegraph revelations are some of the most stupid - but we expected it from the Conservatives. Ridiculously wealthy through families or second jobs, they do not seem to understand how real people live. Labour are just learning that art.

Swimming pool cleaning, moat filtering, tennis court repairs - it sounds the sort of housekeeping and maintenance bills for Sheikhs rather than humble MPs.

Here's a question. Should the taxpayers be paying for cleaners, gardeners, maintainers or housekeepers at all? In real life we make a choice as to how we want our property to look and we don't ask others to pay for it. If a pipe leaks, we pay. MPs choose where they live, the size of the house and how it looks as well as its maintainability. Why on earth we should be paying for anything like cleaning, gardening, housekeeping, up keep, maintenance is beyond me. I thought the Green Book said only expenses which are wholly for carrying out the duties as MPs?

It's why when Gordon Brown's expenses were published, perhaps I was the only one in the country who was outraged that I was paying for a cleaner for his flat in London - and was this the flat he had paid for under second home allowance as he was meant to live in 1) 11 and 2) 10 Downing Street at our expense?

I think the country is sick to its core at the outrageous gravy train that has been exposed with so few not on it. Pathetic, snivelling, contrived and late apologies don't cut it.

Start sacking them and, if possible, prosecuting the lot of them. They have no right to tell us how to live our lives after they have shown they have less morals than an urban fox.

No comments: