tonyav - "
Sir Malcolm say's 'Unrealistic for MP's to live on £67,000'."
I would not for one minute wish to defend this odious man, but he has a point - although he expressed it badly.
What he means is, that although £67,000 is a fortune to the average working person, in terms of the sort of salary that he could earn - and no doubt will now in the future - is considerably higher than an MP's salary.
The Conservative argument is - if you want people who can earn large salaries in the private sector to work as MP's for what is effectively a large pay cut, then you must allow them to top up their salaries with external consultancies and directorships and so on.
So the point is there - seriously clumsily expressed by a man with more than enough experience to know better than to be so arrogant as to effectively say that he is worth far more than an MP is paid.
Well, he will have the chance to go and earn a fat private salary now - although how much use he is as a disgraced and booted out MP remains to be seen.
My own view is that I am very keen for my MP to pick up lots of experience - but unlike Mr Cameron, I want him to do that by being my MP, because that is what I voted for him to do. Every minute he is off doing work outside, he is not being my MP, and not doing the job he undertook when he came asking for my vote.
My communication skills for BT could be vastly enhanced if I had two days a week off to write a biography of Napalm Death, but somehow I don't think they'll go for it!!