Andrew MacKay - My Member of Parliament
Andrew MacKay is my MP. I live in his Bracknell constituency. Today he has quit his role as a senior adviser to David Cameron (or been forced to stand down) because of a scandal involving him and his wife claiming second home allowances on both of their family homes.
According to his comments during the interview linked to above (where Matthew Amroliwala ripped him to shreds) they have two family homes. Mr MacKay claimed that their London home was their second home and his wife (Julie Kirkbride) claimed that their Midlands home was their second home. This has apparently been going on for 8 or 9 years. It is estimated that the amount they have claimed that should not have been here is well over £100,000.
He has apologised and is now saying that he is going to speak to his constituents about his position and to explain himself. He will arrange a meeting next week in the consitutency next week where people can make their feeling felt.
Right, well seeing as he is asking, here is my view Mr MacKay as one of your constituents.
I am absolutely disgusted by your behaviour. Of all the things I have heard that MPs have been up to with these claims in the last week (and there have been a lot of very bad things) this is the worst and I am utterly ashamed that it is my Member of Parliament who has done this. If a member of the public had done a comparable thing on their expenses they would be fired and would almost certainly be investigated for fraud. Offering to repay the money and claiming that they thought it was OK or were advised as such would be no defence. In the interview you said it was brought to your attention recently. Did it really need to be? Did you not know that a married couple of MPs claiming for 2 second home allowances was morally wrong?
I think you should do what David Davis did last year and stand down forcing a by-election in Bracknell. I think you should then seek a new mandate from the electorate in the constituency in order to continue as an MP. We can then give you our verdict at the ballot box.
You can rest assured that I will be attending the public meeting next week to make this point to you in person.
UPDATE2: I did indeed attend the meeting and here is my post about it.
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1 comment:
I have to agree with Mark, Andrew Mackay should do the decent thing as a so-called "honourable gentleman" and resign as our MP, thus forcing a by-election.
Let the people decide who is worthy of the job.
And what is all this about consulting "my employer", implying the Fees Office. WE taxpayers pay his wages. WE are his employers! The Fees Office just dole out our money, and far more than somewhat carelessly!
He seems to be trying to pin all the blame on the Fees Office. Well we pay their wages too, and I can only conclude that they must be in cahoots with some MPs, so as to maximise their claims on us taxpayers. Brown envelopes perhaps?
What the hell has been going on here and for how long?
He says he sought their advice, so if they actually approved this for 8 or 9 years, then they are equally guilty, and all the people involved including Andrew Mackay and his wife should be sacked at least, and preferably prosecuted for defrauding us taxpayers.
I rather feel the same way about all the extreme cases in this dreadful expenses saga. If we dont make a real example here and now of the worst culprits the lesson may not be learned well enough.
Just paying the money back is being far too easy for MPs made rich at our expense.
A fine in addition at least would be in order surely?
If we put them in jail that would only cost us more money!
How about putting them in the stocks and humiliating them like in the old days?
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