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It’s a little-known parliamentary tradition that while making the Budget speech, the Chancellor of the day may drink whatever he wishes. Previous incumbents have shown their true colours by opting for a stiff whisky (Kenneth Clarke), a shaken-not-stirred gin and tonic (Geoffrey Howe) and even sherry and beaten egg (William ‘snowball’ Gladstone). Reflecting the more sombre and health conscious times of today, both Alistair Darling and Gordon Brown went for water (when perhaps absinthe may have been more required) and the current Chancellor, our Gideon, followed this dour, modern tradition of still as opposed to sparkling.
Taking into account of how Georgie Boy actually wanted to be seen it should perhaps have been a pint of mild, served in a jug and with a pickled egg. Oh yes, with the announcement of a £7.20 Living Wage, didn’t he just want to parade those working class values he witnessed on his recent ‘Northern Powerhouse’ road tour. Yes, the one that’s now been given the big-e following the rising cost of railway electrification.
It’s a shame that he, and the rest of Parliament it has to be said, didn’t make such a hoo-ha about their acceptance of their own pay rise. Last month, just as the Chancellor was working on his plans for a further £4.5bn in spending cuts, it was announced that MP’s would indeed receive a 10% pay rise in September, taking their base salaries (their base salaries remember) from £67,060 to £74,000. The silent dormice scurrying about the crumbling edifice of Big Ben made more noise than the MPs did over this.
I will concede that accompanying this unnecessary hike is a series of measures that do finally limit the gravy-train of perks and benefits that the privileged few have gorged themselves on, including the abolishing of the final-salary pension scheme, stopping them use taxis on the public purse, ‘hospitality’ payments made without receipt and the prevention of second home mortgage payments. Deep down, I do think the time is probably nigh for us all to stop vilifying of politicians as money-grabbing crooks, but sneaking this sort of thing under the radar makes it ever so difficult to do.
