At 12.55pm I got an email from Tory HQ with a quote from David Cameron saying MPs had to "demonstrate completely that we share the public's real fury at what went on in parliament". But no one seems to have told Sir Patrick Cormack, because less than half an hour later he was on The World at One suggesting that MPs need to be well paid because they are expected to give to charity.
This is the key quote:
The fact is that being a member of parliament is an extremely expensive business. One is expected to give liberally to all manner of charities. One is expected to attend all manner of events. One is expected constantly to be putting one's hand into one's pocket. And, you know, one has to recognise that. It is expensive being a Member of Parliament.
Cormack was trying to make a valid point. In some respects being an MP is an expensive business. Most of them need to run a second home (which is why they get an allowance to pay for it). But I'm sure there are much better ways of making this argument than by suggesting that MPs require a subsidy to offset their charity donations.
