The MPs Expenses scandal is a Symptom

I has not previously posted on the scandal of MP's Expenses, because:

• The Daily and Sunday Telegraph were doing such a good job of covering this and the rest of the Mainstream media rushed in with a feeding frenzy to cover any angles that the Telegraph had not dealt with. Thus making any post from me irrelevent.
  
• I was not surprised that some MPs were feeding off the expenses gravy train to an embarrassing, scandalous, and probably illegal extent. The scale of some of the claims and the number of MPs involved playing the system for all it is worth did give me pause, but quite honestly I see this entire scandal as purely a symptom of the collapse of standards in public life.
• In the Article MPs' expenses: Full list of MPs investigated by the Telegraph, there were a few MPs' claims that caused a wry, ironic smile: How Sinn Fein MPs' claimed £500,000 for second homes, the five MPs, who represent the political wing of the IRA, have not even taken up their Parliamentary seats and yet they have rented three London properties from the same family at rates well above the market norm. The Hazel Blears property swap trick, which Gordon Brown has deemed totally unacceptable, I found particularly ironic after my post:
  Agreeing and Disagreeing with Hazel Blears. The case of Alex Salmond who's claims for food allowance even when parliament is not sitting (not that he often attends even when parliament is sitting, because he his playing at being a pseudo prime minister in the Scottish part of the United Kingdom). This claim for Food might be expected of John Prescott and of course he did claim the maximum food allowance, but then even when Deputy PM, he was more interested in his perks than actually doing anything useful.
• One name that (so far) does NOT appear of the Telegraph list of investigated MPs' is George Galloway! This is a surprising omission as he was deemed to be the Worst MP in a Telegraph Article on the 4th April 2009. His value rating which is total expenses claimed (for the year 2007/2008) divided by a calculation of an MPs work rate (attendance, voting record, speeches in debate and number of written questions) is £21,201. This is well over three times the 2nd Worst MP Claire Short with a value rating of £6,546 and almost 70 times worse than the best value MP Philip Hollobone (Conservative, Kettering) with a value rating of £376.

But as I stated earlier this scandal is, I believe just a symptom of the collapse of standards in Public Life, where duty, integrity and public service have lost their meaning to far too many of those we elect to represent us. Where the subtle and sometimes less than subtle corruption of whose elected to office is built into the system (second jobs, free trips and dinners where favours are requested and too often granted, an expenses system designed to be abused, etc) . This coupled with the politicising of some Senior Civil Servants under New Labour, has resulted in the Mother of all Parliaments, being more comparable with Nigerian Political Practices of the recent past than a symbol of how Democracy should work.

The complaint that our Politicians have lost touch with the people who elected them is valid. Unfortunately many of them don't actually see this as a problem as they only have to even consider us at election time and these days they will spin their record and that of their party as best they can, then pray that we re-elect them so they can get their noses back in the trough. After all being an MP is their job, their career, we the electorate are an inconvenience that can be ignored most of the time whilst they get on with being a Politician.

Even some of those who express concern about the need reengage the public in politics have, by their behaviour done this cause serious harm, yes Hazel Blears (nicknames 'Chipmunk' and my favourite from Ian Hislop, 'Squirrel Nutkin') I mean you!

However there are MPs' with integrity and a belief they are in Parliament to make a positive difference, Notably:
Douglas Carswell who was elected in 2005 and shortly afterwards was moved to comment openly of his "revulsion" at the system and how, frankly, he was embarrassed to be an MP - His Blog is now on my must read list!

Blog Links:
BBC Nick Robinson's News Blog
BBC Stephanomics - Stephanie Flanders

Douglas' Blog (Douglas Carswell MP)
his website is here:
Douglas Carswell MP for Harwich and Clacton
Iain Dale's Diary (Tory)
Labour List (Obviously Labour)
(Note - former editor: Derek Draper who resigned due the emails smear scandal)
Guido Fawkes Blog
(Apparently Hazel Blears least favourite political blog
Now on the Idle Man's must read list)

Something worth Reading:
(and I still mean to blog on this):
Revitalizing Politics: Have We Lost the Plot?.
a paper by:
Gerry Stoker, Colin Hay and Andy Williamson.

cc All Emails to Jacqui Smith Day - Not A Good Idea

An internet group is urging internet users to send a copy of all emails they send and receive on the 15th June to Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary in protest against the government's plans to monitor internet communications (emails, VoIP calls, texts, internet usage etc). Actually the email address is Home Office Address for comments regarding the Policy Consultation Document and not Jacqui Smith Directly.

Firstly I see the policy, which is in the Consultation Phase, as an extension of existing powers covering 'traditional means of communication'. Probably because I have spent much of my professional life in an industry where Terrorism has been the 'Elephant in the Room', not discussed, but always there, I understand the need for extending current legislation to encompass the internet and am in many ways concerned that this has not been dealt with earlier.
However I can understand that for many people this is an issue, and their concerns have both an emotive and intellectual basis and accept my viewpoint is a pragmatic one because of my background.

Secondly the Consultation Document covers the alternatives methods of achieving what is required, whilst at least giving some consideration to privacy concerns. Despite what some Online Articles and Blogs have indicated, HMG is NOT considering a Central Mega-Database (although the consultation document indicates that this would have been a good solution but not a viable one for non-technical reasons - Note: from the Governments Record on actually implementing major IT projects I see this as non-option anyway). So the alternatives revolve around the collection and storage of the required information by: ISPs, Social Networking Sites and VoIP providers.

Moving on from Policy to Emailing the Home Office. Emailing a Government Department regarding a particular issue, or policy statement is the right of every citizen. Encouraging what is effectively email spamming of a department, is at the very least juvenile and distasteful.

I am not a fan of Jacqui Smith as Home Secretary and really don't believe she should be in that job, nor indeed a Minister of the Crown in any capacity.
Unfortunately the flood of pointless emails will be directed at those trying to put together the comments concerning the Consultation Document and I suspect the effect will be to harden Jacqui Smith's resolve that the policy is necessary and urgent.

Thus the Idle Man finds himself in the awkward position of agreeing with Jacqui Smith that legislation is needed and the consultation document makes sense.

Links:
Protecting the Public in a Changing Communications Environment
If having read the above you want to comment then:
Email the Home Office (But do it before 15th June, as any valid considered comment will be lost in the spam),

In the interests of balance here are some links to sites which have a very different viewpoint to mine:
Henry Potter's Blog - Guardian
NO2ID

Finally of course, you may wish to be Juvenile and Distasteful:
cc all your emails to Jacqui Smith day

The 1939 London-Cape Town Records have been finally Broken

When Alex Henshaw set the record back in 1939 in in a single engined and especially modified Percival Mew Gull Racing Aircraft G AEXF: He flew London - Cape Town - London round trip in Four days, 10 hours and 16 minutes.

No one then could have predicted it would be 70 years before that record would be broken.

Today the 11th May 2009 Charles 'Chalkie' Stobbart completed the same trip in a Home-build Osprey GP4 aircraft in Three Days 15 Hours and 17 Minutes
See the Henshaw Challenge Web Site

A tremendous achievement, but one the Mainstream Media in the UK has ignored, instead considering the breakup of a reality show couple more important.

Whilst Alex Henshaw flew from Gravesend Airport to Cape Town and then back to Gravesend, Chalkie Stobbart departed Cape Town and arrived at Southend and then Back to Cape Town.

Obviously Chalkie benefited from the technical advances in Navigation Technology, but this should take nothing away from a shining example of human endeavour and endurance.

To Chalkie Stobbart:
Well done sir!

Fundamental Political change is critically needed in the UK

An Article by: Mark Jago - Published with his permission
The Opinions Expressed are those of the Author.

I hate to say that I told you so, if you read my article posted here on the 5th of January about how the Governments inept credit crises policies are inflicting social and economic damage. You will begin to understand why day by day their fiddling is the root cause of the continuing economic implosion. Exposing the fundamental flaws of a supposedly benign benevolent state and laying bare a corrupt political culture that has led the country to the edge of a cataclysmic economic and social collapse.

Such is the entrenchment of the states misguided policies, culture and philosophises that UK society over decades has become indoctrinated, compliant and resigned to accept a miserable existence that is the lot of the majority of UK citizens. It's not until you move away and live outside the UK do you begin to understand how its society has been deceived by a system that rewards only a select few.

There are simple questions that in an ethical society have simple answers. Basically we hold people to account for their actions and expect a certain level of responsibility in the way we conduct our daily lives. If you apply these questions to the government it's clear that the government is giving money to thieves who have been systematically stealing it aided and abetted by its own dismantling of ethical safeguards. Unlike professional engineers, architects and doctors, politicians are not held accountable for the damage inflicted by their selfish, short sighted and inept political decisions. The government continues to metaphorically hold their citizens hands in the fire giving them little or no opportunity to exercises their democratic rights to oppose its undemocratic rule.

Democracy is a form of government in which state-power is held by the majority of citizens within a country. For this to be affective all members of the society (citizens) should have equal access to power and all members (citizens) must be able to enjoy universally recognized freedoms and liberties.

By any moral standards the UK is a non democratic centralistic dictatorship where there is no charter of freedoms and rights afforded equally to all members of society. In a democratic society politicians get replaced when they don't perform up to expectations. In a democratic society governments regularly get dissolved and new elections held when they fail to live up their democratic mandate.

The behaviour of the current government can only be classified as disgusting and by any measure it fails measurably to act in the best interests of its citizens. There is a litany of indicators that classify it amongst the most oppressive regimes in the world.

The classic indicators of dictatorships are as follows:

• A regime that is obsessed with its own security, feels the need to prioritize military expenditures over the economic well being of the country. It's a bully that justifies its interference into other countries affairs and dictates policy which it has no intention of following itself. Two examples are the invasion of Iraq and the continued investments in nuclear submarine weapons. A nuclear deterrent is not a viable option in a country that where a large portion of the population are former citizens of 140 countries. In a country that is increasing reliant on potential antagonist countries for its energy, its economic well being and for food imports.
• A regime that feels threatened by its own citizens and attempts to micro manage every aspect of their daily lives. Implements laws that restrict citizen's rights and freedoms, uses excessive surveillance to keep track on them and encourages government bodies to snoop on them and to harass them. Curtails the freedom of their citizens to voice objections and uses excessive policing tactics to manage and unlawfully detain protesters. The policing of the G20 protests is a good example of this where violence with initially instigated by the police, individual police identity numbers were hidden and protesters were greatly outnumbered by the police and unlawfully detained.
• It's a regime that institutes a confusing array of laws which it then selectively enforces to create a dual class society with an un-equal recourse to justice for the majority. Typically the victim is punished and the perpetrators are sheltered from prosecution and or punishment. Malpractice in the police force, health service, government departments and banking investment services are examples of this. Look at the news media any day and incompetence and malpractice has become common to the point that public has become "tuned out" to the abuses. An example this week is the trial of three legal immigrant's that made millions by forging immigration papers and qualifications that the home office didn't bother to check rubber stamping hundreds maybe thousands of legal immigrant's entry into the UK.
• Typically dictator regimes are grossly incompetent and have an incestuous relationship with various levels financial and government institutions. The people in charge are usually poorly qualified and too busy looking after their selfish needs to manage proper oversight of the areas under their control. These people can be identified easily by the way that they reward themselves with bonuses, perks and large guaranteed pensions. While they at the same time ensure that legitimate business and workers pay the consequences for the regimes incompetence with the loss of their business, jobs, homes and pensions. For those who remain solvent is the cost of living and running a business is constantly increased with additional taxes to make up for the short fall of government funds. The announced autumn increase in Petrol tax is one is just one example of this.
• Particularly sleazy dictator regimes portray themselves as democracies. These can be identified by the way their version of democracy is managed.
  
  Typically a cosy relationship between two parties, perks and pensions tend to be similar for the opposition, less hassle and more time to enjoy life. The opposition is weak and ineffective and offers little alternatives to voters.
  
  The opportunity to vote and who to vote for is kept to a minimum. A vote once every five years for a small number of representatives in proportion to the population for party pre-screened preselected candidates that will follow party lines with little effective democratic choice exercised.
  
  Power is tightly held by a very few powerful people. The Prime Minister being selected by the ruling party and positions of power are given out at his discretion in a way that consolidates his own power base.
  
  Elected cabinet members are outnumbered by powerful non elected civil servants and other non elected members such those that the government have selected to be members of House of Lords.
  
  It is in affect an exclusive club that rewards its members well for keeping the status quo going. Increasingly, powerful politicians are selected to cabinet by Prime Ministers having them made members of the House of Lords and circumventing the need to call a by-election and a voter mandate.
  
  In Parliament question time is a choreographed event designed to give an impression of democracy that in effect does not exist. Creating a democratically elected House of Lords is example of a government policy talked about and never implemented.
  

Recent events in the United States of America with the election of a new President prove that democracy however biased in favour of a rich and powerful corporate élite can be won back by grass roots citizen activists. President Barack Obama and his team are working very quickly to put right the excessive abuses of the previous republican administration. Unlike the UK, elections in the USA are held every two years and power is overwhelmingly held by democratically elected officials with power being shared by the members of the House of Representatives, the Congress and the President. Powerful positions held by non elected officials have to be confirmed with public hearings in the House of Representatives and Congress. These posts are normally only held for the period that the President remains in power, the President not being allowed to serve more than two four year terms. The President recently "opened the door" to holding members of the previous administration legally responsible for the abuses perpetrated by their administration.

The current UK government and previous US administration were co instigators of deregulation with the removal safeguards that were implemented to curb the fraudulent excesses post to the nineteen thirties US financial collapse and depression. The UK and USA governments used their dominance in the world financial markets to gain benefit from fraudulent financial manipulation of the markets and to make easy money available to create a housing bubble in their countries. Those policies sparked the global financial crisis and economic meltdown. The UK financial markets were active participants in creating the commodities bubble by buying commodities, taking them out of the consumer markets ensuring that prices went up and then selling into an inflated market. The dumping of these investments contributed to the collapse of the oil markets and North Sea energy industry*

As expected the government has now resorted to having the Bank of England print money to keep the economy afloat. My previous blog reported that the UK due to reckless government policies will suffer a deeper recession for longer than other most other world economies. Also that inflation would be the nail in the coffin that seals the fate of the UK. These things are coming to pass with the upturn in China trade and the bottoming and signs of a turnaround in the US economy.

The government will quickly find that the US is no longer interested in a special relationship with the UK. The world is no longer interested in paying for the UK's free lunch, the party is over. It will be interesting to see if the British public is willing to accept the UK becoming an African like failed state, or take to the streets in protest like the citizens of other European states are expected to do this summer?

The Idle Man Notes:
I hope this article generates a range of comments, it is both provocative as well as thought provoking.

Other Articles by Mark Jago on this blog:


05th January 2009:
Banks Risk Scottish North Sea Oil industry and Britain's Energy Future
This is referenced twice in the above

10th February 2009:
Banks Continued Failure to Provide Loans makes a UK Depression Inevitable

30th March 2009:
An intelligent World is no longer fooled by G20 Summit Theatre