Jack Straw & Malcolm Rifkind in 'cash for access' sting.

'Jack Sraw being one of the good guys'
Let's not forget his silence on the grooming of young girls in his predominately Muslim constituency.

Presumably MPs from outlying constituencies have a lot of travelling to do. My local MSP does a great deal of work 'on the ground' in her constituency so, yes, she won't be in her office quite a lot of the time, nor in the Scottish parliament. I think even those who don't vote for her would be hard pressed to say she doesn't work hard.

My Westminster MP replies to letters I send him, which is more than my Oxfordshire constituency MP did back in the late nineties and early noughties. He did turn up on my doorstep once and mentioned letters I'd written to him and to which he hadn't replied over several yesrs. He wanted me to join the LibDems. I said no.

You can't judge how much legitimate work an MP does by watching televised parliament.

Ana The Conservative Party would prefer the BBC to be the mouthpiece of the establishment - sometimes it is (when it angers one group of people) and sometimes it isn't (when it angers another). A good example of that is the coverage of Mrs Thatcher's funeral: "The BBC said on Wednesday it had received 268 complaints that its coverage was biased in favour of Thatcher, and 227 who said it was biased against her."

The website "Biased BBC" has contributions that are intended to demonstrate how biased the BBC is. These include:

The BBC's coverage of HSBC has been unearthed to support "Labour's narrative on tax evasion".

- The HSBC is, quite rightly, a major story in all the newspapers (bar The Telegraph which has widely been discredited for its lack of coverage) and on all TV channels.

The BBC has done a "hatchet job on UKIP" (by filming Rozanne Duncan's ignorant ramblings about black people).

- UKIP agreed to take part in the programme and Duncan was in no way "tricked" into making such remarks - she just came out with them. It was a self inflicted "hatchet job".

"We are now well into day 5 of the BBC's intensive coverage of the racist Chelsea fans story".

- Again, this was a story that was not given unusually prominent coverage by the BBC. The whole of Europe reverberated with the story and it has received intensive coverage throughout the British media.

DJ
So you are definitely saying that MP's didn't start working before 2pm

When I was teaching, I used to get to school at 8 am. School did not start until 9 am, whatever time I arrived. Just being in the building does not count. Did you see how many hours Rifkind said he worked? That's definitely part time hours.

Presumably they were doing other parliamentary things before that time. Surely the 9 - 5 reference wasn't meant to be taken literally...

When I said they did not start until 2 pm I had looked at the parliament website. The first committee was tabled for 2 pm. The main house did not start until 2.30 today.

The BBC is notoriously left-wing, POGS - of course they'd rather concentrate on the supposed wrongdoings of Rifkind!

No DJ.

You didn't start watching until 2 pm !

As you quite rightly said they watch from t.v's in their offices and before 1 pm Parliament Live is rarely televised, you usually get Select Comittee proceedings live or pre recordings.. That is not the same as they didn't start working to 2pm.

You're right, it's not a 9-5 job. They did not start until 2.00 p.m.

Did I just miss something or did Newsnight discuss Rifkind but totally ignore to mention/discuss Jack Straw?

DJ

Just because when you switched over the voting for the ammendments were over doesn't mean they were not there ,I do not exaggerate to prove a point!!!

Yes Parliament is still going 22.34 pm as Conservative Mike Wheatherley is talking of Oesopageal Cancer, having had oesophogeal cancer himself. The point is Parliament is not a 9-5 job which I think some people believe it is, or even less hours worked reading some posts.

Just switched over. Not many there at all.
Scottish affairs committee now.
Debate on oesophageal cancer. Most of them left.

You could be answering yourself then DJ.

The benches are full tonight.

Have watched it a lot today. There were not many of them there even when Cameron came in.
It seems they all have screens in their rooms in the commons and can just go for the vote. There was a program on last week showing the PM having to go back for a vote from a white tie function because the Labour party tried to bring in a vote early.

Or of course you could switch on your tele to freeview 131 where they are all still working voting on the Serious Crime Bill as I type. 21.48pm

Blasted slackers working still at this time of night.

I assumed roseq meant because they weren't there!

No it's cos it's all so BORING!!!!!!! (and they're getting on a bit!!!)

That's because they're all doing other jobs!
Shows how cynical we are all getting.

Is that why you see them falling asleep on the parliamentary benches, soontobe?

I don't see them falling asleep, djen - I can't see them in the House at all most of the time

I've always had the impression that Jack Straw and Malcolm Rifkind were committed MPs. Both of them have been MPs for a very long time so it would appear that their constituents thought they were committed too.

I agree Iam. I would do the same . MP's by the way of things are not well paid when compared to other professional jobs. I would pay a realistic salary, provide accommodation in London in the way of service flats or whatever. Make outside financial interests illegal,(difficult with a family business of course!!) expenses would be declared and authorised or not!! and probably other things too! That way we might,just might get some sense and proper commitment from our MP's, and put a stop to the newspapers digging for dirt. Folorn hope probably!!!

www.spinwatch.org/index.php/issues/lobbying/item/5744-just-because-everyone-s-at-it-doesn-t-make-it-right

As niggleynellie says, many professionals take on work outside their full time employment. I occasionally did staff training, privately when working for the la. The rule was any such work would be declared and done outside working hours, i.e. by taking annual leave. It worked well.

I'm probably a lone voice in feeling we should pay MP's more, they earn half what a GP does or much less than many professionals with similarly huge responsibilities and long hours. I'd increase the salary, provide accommodation in London rather than a 2nd home allowance. Any work outside their paid job to be declared on public sites and discouraged!

durhamjen