Yesterday I urged David Cameron to clear his diary and write his own solution to the crisis that threatens to destroy MPs' standing. Mr Cameron's Northern Ireland spokesman Owen Paterson has given him one component of that solution: Sinn Féin MPs should end their boycott of Westminster and represent their constituents OR lose their taxpayer-funded allowances. They must be forced to abandon their 'principled' opposition to sitting in the House of Commons or they must abandon the UK taxpayers' allowances.
This morning's Daily Mail reported that "Sinn Fein MPs claim £500,000 of your money to pay for London flats (even though they never go to Parliament)."
Tim Montgomerie
Owen Paterson provides this information by way of background: "The issue of paying allowances to elected Members of Parliament who do not take their seats is not part of the Good Friday and St Andrews Agreements. The issue was raised by Sinn Féin in 1997 with the then Speaker Betty Boothroyd, who refused permission on grounds that the House of Commons did not permit what she described as “associate membership”. The Labour Government returned to this issue in 2001 and whilst the then leader of the House, Robin Cook, confirmed that this was a House of Commons matter, through the mechanism of a motion in Parliament, certain allowances were voted through by the Labour majority. The then Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Quentin Davies, bitterly opposed this. His successor, David Lidington, consistently stated his opposition saying that “Sinn Féin MPs should not be paid parliamentary salaries or be allowed to claim expenses while they refuse to take their seats in parliament.” The referendums in 1998 legitimised the current political arrangements. Meanwhile, Sinn Féin have dropped their policy of abstentionism in the Dáil and at Stormont."
A simpler solution would be that anybody who wins an election but fails to take up their seat would forfeit their seat with the seat passing to the person placed second.
The purpose of an election to a public office is to find the most popular candidate who wishes to stand for a particular office, not to elect someone who may not wish to take up the office.
Posted by: Mark Williams | April 08, 2009 at 18:05
The answer to your question at least at the moment is yes. It's enough to make you weep that this situation was ever allowed to arise.
Posted by: Malcolm Dunn | April 08, 2009 at 18:14
They have, of course, also received about £600,000 each in salary plus travel and staff "expenses".
It was all part of a bribe organised by Blair and Mandelson, both of whom know too well the allure of lucre.
Posted by: Victor, NW Kent | April 08, 2009 at 18:22
" Sinn Fein - or anyone else-should not be paid parliamentary salaries or be allowed to claim expenses while they refuse to take their seats in parliament.”
ie before they have taken the parliamentary oath
and therefore should not be allowed to gain access to the pay, pensions or allowances of MP's.
So bruddy obvious that the gentleman's club missed it.
Posted by: Jake | April 08, 2009 at 18:24
I'd like to see our leadership undertake that they will stop this particular abuse immediately following the next election.
Posted by: John Broughton | April 08, 2009 at 19:01
Clearly there's no stomach for doing unto the present Sinn Fein as Cumann na nGaedhael did unto Fianna Fail with the Electoral Amendment Act in 1927 ...
It's harder to object to the excessive expenses claimed by MPs who don't turn up to attend select committee business if one's prepared to permit expenses for MPs who undertake no legislative business at Westminster at all!
Posted by: Martin Keegan | April 08, 2009 at 19:13
A new variant on an old tradition:
Claim early, claim often.
Posted by: Teesbridge | April 08, 2009 at 19:19
How can one talk of Sinn Féin and principles in the same sentence?
"Sinn Féin MPs should end their boycott of Westminster and represent their constituents OR lose their taxpayer-funded allowances."
Exactly right. As always they are abusing our parliamentary system. GSTQ
Posted by: The Bishop Swine | April 08, 2009 at 20:42
Claim early and claim often? Is this the "Armalite and Additional Costs Allowance" strategy?
Posted by: Martin Keegan | April 08, 2009 at 20:49
"A simpler solution would be that anybody who wins an election but fails to take up their seat would forfeit their seat with the seat passing to the person placed second.
The purpose of an election to a public office is to find the most popular candidate who wishes to stand for a particular office, not to elect someone who may not wish to take up the office." - Mark Williams.
Absolutely right.
Posted by: Super Blue | April 08, 2009 at 21:30
I'm not apologising for their position, which is obviously taking the proverbial; but, is it that much more ridiculous than two MPs from our own party paying off their second home mortgage with the allowance, then gifting it to the family trust and using taxpayer money to pay the "rent"?
As I say, I am no fan of Sinn Fein, but we need to be careful not to stand in the middle of a glass house and play catch with a brick.
Posted by: James N | April 08, 2009 at 22:04
Are you all mad? We should worry about Sinn Fein when they stop taking the Queen's coin, not before.
The British are, in essence, buying peace in Northern Ireland. Robinson and his wife are raking it in. So are the Shinners.
This might make us uncomfortable, but it's reality. It gives us a point of leverage. I'd much rather have them financially beholden to us than not.
Posted by: Realpolitik | April 08, 2009 at 22:18
You won't get any change out of Sinn Fein/IRA.
What about their hopeless denounciation of the recent killings in Northern Ireland.
Fine for them some years ago wasn't it?
Posted by: Robert Eve | April 08, 2009 at 22:54
This is not a new issue - it's just been brought to a wider audience by the Mail.
Sadly, it is just one more example of the constant appeasement of Irish republicanism practiced under Tony Blair's premiership.
Posted by: Giles Clifton | April 09, 2009 at 09:21
This brings us back to making expenses totaly transparent.
Pay expenses only against reciepts that way two married MPs cannot claim for the second house that they both live in (extra care that they do not claim for two different second homes). The second home should be the one that they use to attend Parliament since their first home is the one that they lived in prior to being an MP. If they do not attend Parliament then they have no need of a second home and should get nothing.
All this is just 'plain old common sense' unfortunately our leaders seem to be in short supply of this useful commodity
Posted by: Alan.Summ | April 09, 2009 at 15:09
Worrying about Sinn Fein is totally missing the point. They, nor the people who elect them, care what you think.
The point is that OUR MPs are taking us for a ride, and justifying it. They're the problem, not SF. You'd expect as much from them, not from the likes of Derek Conway.
Posted by: YourNameHere | April 10, 2009 at 11:19
I'm surprised at how out of date the msm and "main" politcal parties can get.
Gordon has promised The Northern Irish Assembly £50bn over the next seven years.
Half a million is chicken feed.
The "English" NHS pays hundreds of millions of punds to Ireland, as a whole, to look after the "British" Pensioner "diaspora".
WTF.
Posted by: Patrick Harris | April 10, 2009 at 13:26
The lesson here is that, whatever abuses any politician ever commits, "Nobody does it better" than Sinn Fein.
Posted by: Super Blue | April 10, 2009 at 22:14