Saturday, May 16, 2009

The Expense Scandal in Britain

A week or so ago, the Telegraph newspaper got its hands on some of the juiciest secrets in Britain -- the dubious expenses claimed over the last few years by British politicians. The scale of the cupidity is astonishing. The evidence suggests that members of all parties -- Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat, even, most impressively, representatives of Sinn Fein, the Irish republican party whose members for years actually refused to take their seats because they didn't recognize Westminster's writ -- have been bilking the system for all they're worth.

The scandal threatens to be as corrosive as anything seen in Britain in decades -- this is not just about a party abusing power; it threatens to undermine the public's remaining faith in the probity, not just of politicians, but of Parliament itself.

Read the rest of The Wall Street Journal article.

2 comments:

Tom said...

Come to Ireland, where the expenses gravy train has a stopover.

They have thicker necks over in the land of Saints and Scholars because they will think twice before resigning and the chances of being usher are even slimer.

Google "Fas, expenses" and you will see that alot of trips took place to Florida for the State training agency FÁS. FÁS translated means growth, but growth to who's bank balance.

Bring the missus as well and don't forget the $900 for a round of golf all in the name of science.

The gravy train was overflowing all over Europe by the looks of it.

Michael Wade said...

Tom,

I believe that few governments are immune from that temptation. It's so easy to fall into an entitlement mentality.