Following the huge scandal in 2009, MP’s expenses have never been far from making the news headlines. The recent expenses scandal involving former Culture secretary Maria Miller, who was forced to resign as a result of all the media attention and scorn from the public over her expenses has thrown the topic back into the limelight.
The expenses scandal in 2009 revealed flagrant, historical abuses of the expenses system by many MP’s and led to reform over how expenses should be regulated. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority was introduced to establish and monitor a system to review expenses. However, expenses claims submitted before 2009 are still investigated by the 13 members of the Commons standards committee, 10 of whom are MPs from the three main political parties.
Surely it would be more sensible and fair for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority to review expenses claims before 2009? It would most certainly lead to a more equitable Parliament and remove any chance of favouritism or leniency by fellow MP’s in regard to their expenses. If all MP’s expenses claims, historical and new, are not treated equally it undermines Parliament’s attempt to be more legitimate and appear less dishonest. If parliament is to fully rid itself of the spectre of elitism and the notion of ‘one law for the rich and one law for the poor’, the expenses system’s loopholes need to be fully addressed and tightened to root out unfair claims and prevent more abuses in the future.
zarakafzal 