Sunday 10 May 2009

CLEAN HANDS

open palmsTHIS IS THE BLOG OF COLIN JONES, RHYL TOWN COUNCILLOR: BODFOR WARD
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The opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own and not the views of the town council.
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A big news story in the last few days is about MPs' expense claims which seem to the average person to be unacceptable. An example is that an MP could get money from the public purse to improve a house and then sell it and buy another and claim again and so on. This kind of racketeering is said to be within the rules that MPs invented for themselves. Self-regulation of any kind is a nonsense; it encourages the greedy and selfish in any profession (banking is another example).

This morning a neighbour enquired and he was surprised to hear that town councillors – unlike county councillors – receive no pay at all, and no expenses are claimable except on extremely rare occasions when we are required to travel out of town (this has never happened to me) and there is nothing thrilling in the way of perks and no one has ever had the nerve to offer me a bribe.

He went away looking disappointed.

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