Judgement is Coming
So Legg has found 52% of MPs guilty of over-claiming from taxpayers, all three party leaders had to make repayments and some MPs should face criminal charges today. They all face an election.
So judgement is coming in one form or another. The British political class make excuses, they wriggle and they deny. The inescapable truth is that they have been caught looting taxpayers for all they could get away with, they deserve all the opprobrium and more. Imagine a private sector firm where 52% of the staff had been found guilty of cheating their customers. It would be treated as a criminal enterprise.
So how should we describe our political class? It is not right and it certainly isn’t honourable.
*Legg’s vetting of 752 MPs’ and ex-MPs’ expenses over the period 2004-09 resulted in a total figure of 390 being told to pay up. That is 52% of the MPs…
It’s Morley & Chaytor for the chop – leaking out across Westminster now.
So that’s it then?
It’s the British way – sacrificial lambs and obfuscation. Few weeks of fury and then carry on as before, lads.
Suspect there won’t be radical changes from all this. There never is.
Imagine a private sector firm where 52% of the staff had been found guilty of cheating their customers. It would be treated as a criminal enterprise.
Or better still imagine a private sector firm where it had not only cheated the customers but stolen from the taxpayer while they were at it.
Yes, that would be the Bankers and far from facing judgement their snouts are firmly in the Bonus trough yet again.
By all means jail all the scum MPs but remember to leave some cells free for the scum Bankers.
If we were jailing scum we’d need a whole city. Liverpool?
Anonymous – fuck off
Yes
And dont’ forget that selling toxic mortgages securitised and given a AAA rating was and is FRAUD….
I think you will find the government work for the bankers and their corporate buddies.
They most certainly do not work for you or anyone else.
Shove all the Bankers and MPs in the millenium dome and throw away the key. Not too far for them to go and it has a certain ironic charm.
STOP PRESS
Read their excuses
http://mpsallowances.parliament.uk/mpslordsandoffices/hocallowances/allowances-by-mp/Repayment%20List.pdf
I personally, and not the ACA team, identified these over claims in 4 separate years, on receipt of the copy claim forms, I sought to reconcile the individual claims I had retained and my bank statements. I had , in error inadvertently, claimed council tax for the full 12 months, i.e. April to March inclusive the following year when paying by direct debit you only pay the full costs in only 10 instalments i.e. April to January inclusive the following year. I repaid the total overpayment sums immediately without being asked to do so. I must admit that I am surprised that the Validation Team in the Department of Resources did not spot my mistake at the time of the claims being submitted. – Nicholas “fat Huhne” Winterton
Think you’re being a bit harsh – I mean, 52% stole a lot from us; this means that almost 48% only stole a little bit from us.
And remember, as Gordo would say, “Taxations is Nurses and Teachers..”
Utter blx
What percentage conspired with the speaker to try to keep it hushed up?
By their factually accurate accounting systems, I imagine about 110%
Don’t agree Mitch, there are already significant changes and many will be far reaching, this situation is far from over.
Things never stay the same especially in politics, ask any politician!
Organised Crime is the only description which fits the actions of MPs and Lords.
Legal justice will be limited to the official sacrificial scapegoats; electoral justice will hopefully be harsher.
It’s a shame that crime is the only thing that MPs seem to be capable of doing in an organised manner.
The expenses scandal provides a very good reason for refusing to vote for the current incumbent of any seat unless you’re 110% sure his/her expense claims are squeaky clean.
I’m pretty sure my MP claimed at least 110% of what she was entitled to. Is that the same thing?
that’ll teach them for refusing to be freemasons
Morley could never get the handshake right.
Fists full of fivers and pies.
OT
fucking hilarious
http://twitter.com/dianainheaven
“Bruce Lee just glassed Beadle for nicking his golf clubs and replacing them with slightly shorter replicas.”
Hahahahaha!
Robert Palmer now showing off the ‘e-reading capabilities’ of his ‘iPad’.He’s stuck a copy of Exchange & Mart on to the fucking baking tray
Will he be slaughtered in Halal style?
I have been following his career (in both senses of that word) for some time and even before the expenses row I formed the view that he is a fat, smug, loathsome know-it-all, whose radio persona owes much to the Danny de Vito character in “Matilda”:
I’m right, you’re wrong
I’m an adult, you’re a kid
I speak, you listen
Farewell, Elliot, JobCentre Plus is thataway!
Oh, and Morley, remember that criminal convictions are declarable
Elliot. Elliott – it’s ‘do you want fries with that, SIR’ – never forget the ‘SIR’ – now, try it again….
No women on trial. How very sexist. Baroness Udders & Wacki Jacqui Smith should both be doing stints in Holloway.
Women and ethnic minorities are protected species. Only white males are capable of real crimes according to the PC handbook.
In keeping with the current zeitgeist, and after having my aesthetic sense thoroughly abused this week by female socialist mp’s, that it becomes mandatory for them all to wear a burka and bell tent.Then at least I will only have to listen to their shit.
When I realized I was not going to make it on looks and talent, I asked an economist what to do. He said “Fraud” and gave his reasons:
*it is disproportionately hard to be found out.
*if you are found out, the case against you is much harder to establish in court
*if you are in court you are unlikely to be convicted
*if you are convicted you will face disproportionately low penalties and you will serve them, if at all, in better prisons.
* The caveat is you must not muck around with tuppeny ha’peny frauds as they carry more risk of detection and conviction – go for the big’uns. Look for loopholes in systems and exploit them cleverly.
Well, the MPs followed your economist’s advice but they were too stupid to even get that right!
Guido, I reckon you are entitled to a modest bevvy, or two, to celebrate a job well done – but don’t stop now, the Nation needs your continueing support. (And so does Hazel Blairs, Jacqui Smith, Baronness Uddon, and the rest, too numerous to mention!!!
Watching Guido rip Tim Yeo a new arsehole last night on Newsnight was utter magic. The last 12 months have seen the political blogosphere upset more applecarts than than Jo Brand has had hot dinners.
What frightens them the most? It is done for pure mischief. Not political gain. How do you fight back against that? You can’t. It isn’t done for profit, it isn’t done for power and it can’t be corrupted. Get your own blog and join in the fun today.
“First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win.” -
— Mahatma Gandhi
I hope you’re right.
The only real question I have, though, is: “How will we know when we’ve won?”
I bet uddin gets away with it, greedy cow !!
“Porker” would be better considering where Uddin-the-’orrible and her Tower Hamlets tribe hail from.
I suggest that the title “Honourable” should be taken away from MPs for one year to signify the disgrace brought on by the expenses scandal. It will also provide an historical reference to this shameful period so that it is never forgotten, or repeated.
You do realise that Gordon Brown,as a Privy Councillor,can keep “The Right Hon” for life,unless he resigns from the Privy Council.
This is the man who kept an illegal £50,000 slush fund and then lied about it at PMQ’s this week.
privvy Council is right although I wouldn’t want him cleaning my bog!
Much larger slush fund than £ 50,000 if the turth is ever known…
But you only have to look at the Macbrides, Balls and other members of Brown’s inner circle to see that not only is he a weirdo but his inner circle as well…
Keep the title, but modified to “The Right Hoon”! He’s welcome to that for life!
Pardon me if I’m cynical but isn’t this just a variation on “There Will be Charges”? Seems to me I’ve heard that before somewhere.
Charging a criminal lowlife M.P. is acceptable. Charging a criminal P.M. is a bit too serious.
Today is the day when the prosecutors actually announce the charges.
There’s 2 or 3 MPs and 3 peers likely to be charged with fraud or false accounting.
Announcement at 11:00 – T minus 86 minutes and counting…..
Many things make me exceedingly angry about all this, but one that really makes my blood boil is reading in Legg’s report “Mr Blair has no issues”. How on earth was he allowed to get away with shredding all his expenses as if that’s the end of it?
If HMRC came to investigate me and I told them I’d shredded all my financial records over the last 6 years, somehow I don’t think they’d just say “OK, old chap, then there’s no evidence of any wrongdoing, so that’s the end of it”.
Watching you and that shyster Yeo on Newsnight shows the depth of their enmity towards the people they are supposed to serve. He was arrogantly proclaiming the need for openess and reform until you shoved it right up his arse. It was a pleasure to see the theiving, troughing bastard squirm.
Good work Guido keep it up.
The continuing slurs on these brave people are outrageous. Everyone knows we’ve got the best politicians that money can buy.
What money?
…the money what’s been nicked.
The levels of corruption are so high that there is only one possible solution.
All rooms, offices, bars meeting places at the HOC, HOL and Portcullis House, must be constantly monitored by cctv cameras and high definition listening devices with open access for all via the internet.
All MP`s and their staff must have their phones and computers bugged and their conversations made public knowledge.
Any MP who meets anyone outside of Parliament must make a written decleration as to the details of the meeting and what was discussed, failure to do so should render any MP liable to a term of imprisonment of not less than 2 years.
Now I know many will find this all a little harsh, but lets face it, they are so corrupt that they should be viewed on the same level as the mafia and treated accordingly until they behave like civilised humans again.
After all, if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear and all that
Ripley’s idea from Aliens would have the best result:
“I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. “
Who appointed these people? Oh dear! We did. Silly us, eh?
And by God we shall not DISappoint them in May!
there will certainly be disappointment, might not be where we want it though
Can we send a FOI request for what amounts where paid to Blair in expenses ?
While the detail has been conveniently destroyed the amounts must still be recorded and allow us to see where he stands on the troughometer.
Has anyone ssent any FOI request on what amounts where paid to Blair on expenses ?
While the detail has been conveniently lost the amounts must still be a matter of record and would allow us to see where he stands on the troughometer.
That nice man Speaker Martin, had all Bliars claims shredded “by mistake” of course.
So how should we describe our political class?
By drawing a back of bog door lady’s Mary in the air with a forefinger?
Many congrats Fawkes – respect is due.
And this doesn’t include the real money made from flipping homes.
Does this mean the b*****ds have got away with that?
Impecunious Pensioner
Flip flip flip flip
Unfortunately they have got away with it.
There is a massive difference between playing the game to the letter of the law, and filling in claims for a non-existant mortgage or work from a non-existant company.
We can call the Darlings and Whacqui Smiths of this world lying, troughing, self-interested profiteering ‘Hoons’ on here all day, but unfortunately there’s no recourse in law for what they have done.
Doesn’t mean that someone can’t stand against them in the election and spend the whole campaign following them round, pointing out to their constituents what a bunch of thieving Hoons they actually are!!
They will, of that you can be sure.
The troughers will feel the heat come election time. Expect many seemingly strange results on election day.
The answer is simple. DO NOT VOTE FOR ANY SITTING MP.
We all know there needs to be a complete sweep out of this Rotten Parliament. Let the various political parties appoint ALL NEW CANDIDATES. If not DON’T VOTE FOR THEM.
They really do need to be taught a lesson. All of them were complicit in this by way of theft or knowing of theft or being too dim to know it was going on. We have only one weapon and that is our vote once every five years. Vote ONLY FOR NEW CANIDATES. Let the rest of them go to hell AND THAT INCLUDES THE SO CALLED LEADERS. They are all ROTTEN.
An excellent suggestion, which I can promise you I shall follow.
But my MP is squeaky clean and is a highly regarded hard working constituency MP.
Sorry but they are all complicit. Vote for any of them and so are you. If you know about theft and do nothing you are part of it.
Better still, do not vote for any in the troika cartel. They have abused their monopoly for too long, get them all out! Vote for ANYONE but the LabLibCon trick.
“We have only one weapon and that is our vote once every five years”
sigh.
In 2005 Labour won a massive majority even though 6/10 voted against them.
52% of voters did not elect anyone, more eligible people didn’t vote in 2001 and 2005 than elected the Government.
Labour promised a referendum on how we elect MPs in 1997, 13 years ago…
Our decisions as consumers are more powerful than our ‘democratic vote’.
and 100% of people didn’t vote for gordon to be pm
I’ve been trying to spread that idea too. However, give them a chance – if they are completely innocent of wrondoing e.g didn’t appear in the Telegraph AND they are excellent constituency MPs AND they belong to a Party you feel you can support. then vote for the current seat holder (precious few will meet that criteria I reckon).
Playing at home is okay
But playing away is better
Ooops, mayber not, sorry Fabio, oh come on, I’m a good geezer really, ‘onest mate, er, Guv, sorry…. shit!
Who gives a fuck about John Terry? So he can kick a ball better than a lot of people, so what?
And the bankers, fat boy?
The existing political class, all of them, work for the bankers and their corporate buddies. One facilitates the other in return for reward money, power and status.
It is a crooked cartel and we are not in it, we just pay for it.
It is astonishing that a backbench MP can pocket £80k for 6 months work.
No wonder the HoC is empty – they are all out earning money rather than representing their constituencies.
Nice work if you can get it.
I’d rather elect an MP from the real world with business knowledge and experience than a Milibanana-type policy wonk/bag carrier any day.
I’ve looked at the pdf file of expenses. What I can’t understand is this, if a claim was made which was not allowable, or exceeded the guideline amount allowable, why was it paid by the civil servants?
If they were junior and were overawed (or bullied) by the MP’s why didn’t they go to their line managers, the permanent civil servants?
The whole point of checking the claims was to ensure that only valid claims were allowed. If this process had been carried out efficiently, all that would be left were the real fiddlers, who are a small percentage of MP’s.
Of course because it seemed allowable doesn’t excuse some of the greed that has been shown, but any future system must include rigorous and efficient claim checking overseen by a senior civil servant with real clout.
It also highlights what happens when a “professional class” of politicians arises who have “Never had a proper job”.
Private business would never have allowed these kind of claims.
It’s an absolute tragedy for democracy in Britain, and I remain unconvinced that any of the parties, and senior civil servants understand just how much damage they have done, and of the need for proper accountancy procedures to be adhered to.
No, no, no
There weren’t ‘rules’, there were ‘guidelines’.
An M.P. is assumed to be ‘honourable (don’t laugh) and therefore validates his own claim.
The fee’s office were indeed suppine, but they weren’t meant to kick up a fuss and knew it.
The BBC will always do its bit to help the political class. The state broadcaster’s take on the story is: “Slightly fewer MPs – 363 in total – have been told they owe nothing.” It can’t be easy for the BBC!
The BBC is as obscene at the political class it protects.
Teflon Tone shredded his expenses but there must be a record of how much he was paid.
Racketeering-Inspired Corrupt Organization
Don’t forget the lovely Lady Minister Follet…forced to repay £ 42 OOO…
while married to a multi-millionaire…
Nulabour is obscene…
Mere bagatelle, you oiks do not deserve me.
Must dash, off to a champagne luncheon with some important people, unlike you.
All those thieving crooks and they’re going to prosecute TWO?!
What about Smith? McNulty?
Or is only lowly non-ministers who are being offered up to placate us?
It`s called window dressing, to keep the plebs distracted.
Yes, of course.
And the thing is, it’ll work.
Never underestimate the stupidity of the British public.
How else could Labour poll 30%?
@Forensic Accountant – none of the officials were civil servants. They were employed by the house of Commons Commission.
Blimey! It never rains but it pours for Gordon Brown!
Expensesgate, DPP decision awaited, 50 Labour MPs standing down, Brown’s cup of wow is really overflowing
But you must remember, none of it is his fault! It’s all the others, you know!
His mind has been on higher things e.g. his continuous ‘phone calls to help save the peace process in NI
he doth bestride the world like a colossus
N.I. politicians – a gang of sanctimonious, bigoted gangsters who actually make our politicians look honourable:
If Blair managed to shred all his expenses claims, as alleged, why hasn’t the paying office, responsible for MP’s expenses, got a copy of his claims?
Surely there must be a separate official record of all claims, otherwise how would they produce the yearly accounts.
We don’t worry about that, we’re too busy concentrating on our initiative to investigate doctors
Perhaps we should now ask the for the expenses our wonderful council officials to be reviewed for probibity. After all corruption is unlikely to be confined to one area of government.
Of course all of this anger won’t get the nation anywhere. It will only contribute to the nations health bill soon to be argued over in the wake of the forthcoming election. All is not well over these attacks on our political reps. We all have to realize that big business controls our politics, as was the case of professor Nutt v the alcohol and tobacco industries combined. Home sec Johnson made sure health is not important. The trump card we must all be aware of will be doctored election results and that’s no different than all these rougue states that we seem to waist billions going to war with ???
Says it all …
http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/politics/politics-headlines/half-of-mps-lie-their-way-out-of-repaying-expenses-201002042439/
The fact is that the tax man should have investigated these claims not some chum of the government .
these repayments are a token jesture some of these thieving scum stole tens of thousands yet were allowed to only pay back part of it some thing that would not have happened if the tax man was on the case and just an example how can you claim for your house as a first home when your wife is claiming it as her second and vice versa ? which a few of them did and the likes of Darling flipping houses for no other reason than tax evasion and personall gain the revenue should demand all these documents and they should over ride any poxy enquiry
Its not the politician, its the idiot voter thats to blame, why on earth consent to some career politician ruining your life and telling you how its going to be while robbing you blind at the same time?
See the poor fool with scorched and bandaged fingers,
wobble back to the fire!
you do realise that we still have NO OFFICIAL CONFIRMATION of the identity of the six people (sic) that the CPS are going to pass comment on don’t you.
If this was some scruffy kid from south London who’d committed crime he’d be all over the papers and his family and friend pursued for their stories …. funny that.
it has come to something when only Melanie Phillips and George Galloway were able to say anythnig sensible about this on QT last night. The rest STILL don’t get it.
No they don’t, not onkly that but Charlie Falconer went beyond satire assuring us that most politicians were un corrupted, and that we must be really careful not to have a situatiuon were only rich people can become MPs.
I see, so the way to avoid this, is to accept that stealing from the public purse is acceptable for those considered “poor” MP’s. Not to mention his troughing friends in the Lords. I also does’t quite explain why multi millionaires like Barbara Follet still feel the need to steal from us.
Just how does a piece of stinking fecal matter like Falconer get to the position he is?
He belongs to a party which thinks that peerages and the right to unelected office shouldn’t depend on who your parents were but on who you went to school or shared a flat with
all that crap he spouts is rotting his teeth
it was reported last night that next year 20% of ALL tax revenue will go on just paying the intrest on the money this government has squandered !
being self employed i know that my tax return is well down, so across the country it will be the same !
how the fuck can Brown keep saying that he is going to keep increasing spending of money he hasn’t got if he gets back in (god forbid) ?
What disturbs me about this is that we are getting quite heated and upset because 390 people have been asked to repay £1,000,000 between them. This works out at just over £2564 for each one. I would happily have let them keep this amount each (and possibly a bit more) if, between them and the remainder of the MPs they had not spent £12,000,000,000 on a computer system for the NHS which doesn’t work. Yes, that’s right £12 billion! Now even if we had given each of the 390 £1 million each that would only have been £390 million and if that would have bought the qaulity of people who prevented the overspend on the failed NHS computer system it would have been money well spent. The NHS computer system failure is just one of the many failures they have presided over, costing us, the taxpayers, much, much more than the £1,000,000 they have been asked to pay back.
Let’s get some perspective here, the £1 million is a drop in the ocean.
I think there is a lot more masivly over budget IT projects i think GCHQ and air traffic control to name but two
the air traffic control one cost billions more,ran years over budget and was already out of date before it went in to service
you will also find alot of family links with politicians and the IT companies that get these masive contracts
Example : hi i’m an mp and i want you to employ my son
i know my son couldn’t even get a job at Mcdonalds cleaning tables
but you see my department is looking for a computer system that will cost several billion pounds
and my son needs to learn how to use a computer
So you stick him in an office give him an important sounding title a big car and a large paypacket with enough money in it to pay me for my brilliant ideas ! Yes i know the technology is not available but it will take you so long to design it that the technology will be by the time you finish it !Charge us what you like and take as long as you like and i’ll keep signing the cheques ok ? You Know It Makes Sense ! Cushty
Extract Taken From The book PRESCOTT A Life Long Barsteward ! available soon from all good pie shops
seems to me it would be quite reasonable for the guilty MPs to collectively pay the costs of the 57 or so investigations which have been initiated to deal with their dishonesty.
52% is the headline number but remember that does not include flipping which I believe to be one of the worst offences. Nor, as far as I am aware, many who claim for broadcasr packages, televisions, etc. are not included in that figure. A true figure would be much, much igher.
Don’t forget the Tories have their snouts in the trough the most. 8/10 of the MP’s that had to repay the most are Tories. And the Tories had the highest avergae repaymnet of £4,227. A grand more than Labour!
[...] Guido Fawkes reported this morning that 52% of MPs have been ‘found guilty’ of ‘looting’ [...]
I do not excuse avarice in the expenses scandal and clearly flipping is a ridiculous loophole to have been left open for so long but when you read through the detail a very large proportion of MPs being asked to repay have been retrospectively penalised for cleaning and gardening overpayments. £2k for a years cleaning and £1k for a gardener are not really realistic numbers to apply these days. I am old now and have to pay more than this for my staff.
incidentaly this panel above the comment box of the girl with the s..y underwear on is very distracting…excuse the wobbly typing
Why aren’t all the MP’s who claimed expenses that are in no way connected to their duties as a public servant being prosecuted under the Fraud Act 2006?
That’s what I’d like to know
Life’s tough hang all 52%
52% shouldn’t get their payoff.