By Mike King
It’s not very often that I read a story that stops me in my tracks but it happened this morning. In what must be one of the biggest PR gaffes in British history, the body responsible for setting MPs’ pay is angling for a hefty salary increase for UK politicians.
Timing is everything, and you’d have to look long and hard to find a worse example of timing. I know they’re an easy target, but MPs really don’t make things any easier for themselves.
It has been widely reported that Bill Cockburn, head of the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB), said yesterday that he believed parliamentarians were underpaid by "10 per cent to 15 per cent”. Or for a more balanced take, look at this.
Strange, given that only a few months ago the same Bill Cockburn announced that MPs would receive an increase of 2.33% this year – itself a generous increase given that the RPI at the time stood at 0%. Now, it seems, they are grossly underpaid.
Even if the current lack of public confidence in MPs on the back of the expenses scandal isn’t enough, the state of the economy and rising levels of unemployment make the timing unbelievable.
Surely, even our out of touch politicians can’t have failed to notice the public mood? As if the expenses scandal isn’t enough of a clue, then the high level of public indignation towards the recent tube strike, not just because of the inconvenience it caused, but because a 5% pay increase was widely seen as unreasonable, can’t have gone unnoticed.
As if we needed any further reminders, politicians are completely detached from those they represent. But really, to now be talking about MPs deserving a large pay increase leaves me open mouthed. Someone somewhere needs some decent PR advice. Though, clearly, for this lot it’s too late.
I agree one hundred percent. Yet, when all is said and done - I think the MPs have perhaps grown slightly too confident in their dealings with the public. Maybe they are following the old adage of - 'there's no such thing as bad publicity'
Are they mistaken in believing so? Most certainly. However - the key issue remains - when this crisis eventually subsides, old ways will return because no one will be paying PR companies to keep the issue in public perception. Sad, but true.
Posted by: Captain | 29 June 2009 at 16:20