³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

maybe treating the symptons is the way to overcome a problem, maybe not,

please ask the vetting question tonight?

Bob

US Elections

Will Jeremy be standing up with his swing-o-meter ?

Re Snouts in the trough

Can anyone explain why the Members' properties and their contents, funded and maintained by public money - complete with improvements, all furnishings, white goods, utilities etc. - are not, in fact, the property of the taxpayer?

This - along with no receipts required under £250 - seem quite as scandalous as employment "issues".

Perhaps when Members' special requirements cease, these public-funded properties could be sold, and profits returned to the Exchequer.

Contents could be sold, Savoy-style, with three days of public viewing of lots in situ, prior to auction.

Good idea?

I think that with all the scandalls recently it can't be bad to keep a tighter leach on politicians. I think that if we voted for them we deserve a bit more respect and honesty.

Surely the two pieces are connected. Can one trust MPs? Then of course they should not be bugged. Should you bug MPs? Only if you believe they are not trustworthy.

McCain sounds as if he will do well.
Time perhaps to go away and read a bit more about him ..... and maybe
also his father who I noticed plays
a role in William Shawcross's
'Sideshow: Kissinger, Nixon and the Destruction of Cambodia' - when the Senator's father who was Commander in Chief of the US Forces in the Pacific was known as the "Big Red Arrow Man" on account of the maps he used when doing his briefings on the 'Chicom' threat which featured what became known to journalists as "McCain's claws". OK - so you don't judge the son by the father; but both favoured the surge option,
albeit in very different contexts:

'McCain, whose son [Senator John] was a POW in North Vietnam, was to play an important part in the story of Cambodia. He is a tiny, sprightly man with a straightforward view of the world. His military briefings were legendary. He would talk very excitedly for forty-five minutes on a subject that might be dealt with in ten and illustrate a doom-laden message with lurid maps of South East Asia. Extended frrom the bright-red belly of China were gigantic red arrows or claws reaching all over that part of the world for which McCain felt responsible. Sometimes his sermons on the 'Chicom' threat were so energetic, his cries of woe so violent, his passionate pleas for aid so draining, that at the end of a briefing he would drop into his chair, ask for questions, and fall fast asleep". ("Sideshow" (1979) by William Shawcross)

Hours and hours today about the suicide bombers in Dimona and the very sad death of the Israeli lady. The story took the lead on the One o'clock and Six o'clock news and to my mind was introduced as if to say 'well we told you so - the Israelis were right to be worried'. Yet the death of 20 civilians in Iraq by bombing is barely reported and then is referred to as an 'unfortunate accident'. Unfortunate certainly for the victims and their grieving relatives. Where is the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's balance?

Dear Newsnight

re Post 5, what is the tax position on these type of expenses and allowances?

Is an issue in this where MPs are asked to decide on matters where they are directly involved, can they really be impartial, and if so can they seen to be so by the British Public?

Can I raise a similar matter with your programme?

The Electoral Commission recommended that the £500 deposit required to stand for Parliament be scrapped. This acts as a disincentive for many people trying to enter Parliament.

the argument doesnt hold that this is required to thin down the numbers on the ballot paper to serious candidates,

Many ecentric candidates can muster the £500 but would find it harder for example to persuade a larger number of electors to endorse their candidate, present number required -10.

Setting the number higher at this would thin the numbers down but the financial disincentive would be gone.

More people could stand as Independents which may be the future of British Politics,

But the Government and Parliament chose to reject the recommendations of the Commission.

There is clear self interest at work here,

Please could you ask MPs tonight and the Electoral Commission for their views on this.

Is it right that the recommendations of the Independent Electoral Commission should be rejected?

best wishes
Bob
www.nocandidate.org.uk

They've been debating the EU Treaty today, supposedly. I wonder how many MPs were present or will vote for the Treaty because Geoff Hoon has threatened to expel any Labour MPs who call for a referendum. No-one at the HoP records attendance of MPs let alone if they do any work for us. With one scandal after the other it is hardly surprising that our opinion of them is so low. I think they just keep their heads down and take as much as they can whilst they can. They will get the consolation pay-off if they lose their seats. They can look forward to a nice fat pension too, as well as keep all the goodies they have bought on expenses.

When the US persists in firing missiles and dropping bombs from fighter aircraft onto places where oridinary Iraqi men, women and children are cowering and running for cover, who exactly at the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ decides to call the resulting carnage a "mistake"?
The US militatry will always call these atrocities mistakes but who at the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ decides to parrot that line when it is so clearly going to kill innocent people.
The history of these military strikes proves that beyond a shadow of a doubt and the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ should be brave enough to report these murderous US bombing raids as terrorism.

One crucial question that remains to be answered is has any of the transcripts from the bugging or any "intelligence" analysis derived from it been passed outside the United Kingdom?

The intelligence services and their operations are under parliamentary scrutiny.

But parliament (i.e. members therof) is under intelligence service scrutiny.

We already know that the royals are bugged.

Who is running the country? (GW Bush?)

In my opinion Ed (message 1) has made a very relevant point.

Why is the emphisis on the MP being a Muslim MP,why should his religion
be mentioned we are not told that a Christian MP goes to visit someone.
Why give Muslims so much prominence,it is not necessary, it just gives fuel to the Muslim Council of Britain to be 'outraged' and they will get as much mileage out of it they can

Interesting to see MPs in Jeremy Paxman's report insisting that they don't see themselves as a class apart deserving special privileges. Maybe their memories don't stretch back to October last year when they decided they should be allowed to move aside anyone in the House Of Commons who was in their way:

"Anger over MP queue jumping rule Staff working here have been told to know their place: behind the MPs Rules allowing MPs to jump queues for things like lifts and restaurants in the Houses of Parliament have been called "a throwback to feudal times". The Commons authorities have told those working in Parliament that "staff and other users should be prepared to give way to Members when queuing".

Given the sanctimonious attacks on politicians by the unelected and sinless public and the unelected and totally honest press one is amazed that there is so much fear of crime.
It has become a habit to condemn whole groups of people such as single mothers, yoof,the old,the unemployed, immigrants, social workers, teachers perhaps it's just the politicians' turn.
Of course politicians ought to behave properly but so should we all.
Who are these people in a state of insurrection? Most don't seem to want to vote for anything but something in a game show. Football, now!

Talk about foaming-at-the-mouth right wingers. "He's anti-torture; I'm pro torture".

Hi Newsnight

Maybe Parliament's ahead of the game? after all they discovered hot desking (or should it be seating) years ahead of the rest of us,?

how many MPs is it that can actually sit at the same time in Parliament...?

best wishes
Bob

Why bother bugging our MP's? Can anyone believe anything they say anyway?

Them and us. The law makers privilege

Can you imagine working for a company that has a little more than 600
>> employees and has the following statistics?
>>
>> 29 have been accused of spouse abuse
>>
>> 7 have been arrested for fraud
>>
>> 19 have been accused of writing bad cheques
>>
>> 117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
>>
>> 3 have done time for assault
>>
>> 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
>>
>> 4 have been arrested on drug-related charges
>>
>> 8 have been arrested for shoplifting
>>
>> 21 are currently defendants in lawsuits
>>
>> 84 have been arrested for drink driving in the last year
>>
>> Which organization is this?
>>
>> It's the 635 members of the House of Commons, the same group that cranks
>> out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in
>> line.

Perhaps prospective candidates should have to obtain a recognised 'MP' qualification before they can stand for election.
And perhaps the public should determine the contents of the course and the length of time involved!