CONSTITUENTS SHOULD HAVE THE MECHANISM TO RECALL THEIR MP
September 21, 2009 11:00 AM
Speaking in the keynote debate on the MP expense scandal at the Liberal Democrat Annual Conference in Bournemouth, Sandy Walkington, Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for St Albans, called for a mechanism for voters to be able to recall an MP and force a by-election where an MP had done wrong. He also repeated his commitment not to have a second home if he is elected - even if it is allowed under the rules.
"For most of my working life I have commuted to London," Sandy said. "I do not see that the Palace of Westminster is any more difficult to reach from Hertfordshire than the City, Victoria or Knightsbridge (all places to which I commuted on a daily basis). With the new more "family friendly" hours at Westminster, MPs often have shorter working hours than people who work in the City or have demanding managerial jobs."
He also criticised the "gravy train" of the food allowance, highlighting Anne Main's £9,500 expenditure on this item. "Mrs Main claimed three hundred pounds a month on average - at least until suddenly, miraculously the monthly claims stopped - that's a crash diet if ever there was one… £9,500 worth of shopping trolleys - what an image. Or try filling a trolley with three hundred pounds worth of food, and then talk to shoppers at Sainsbury or Tesco about it…
"It's a picture of greed and filling of boots which will live with electors for a very long time. The damage to politics is immense. We are all caught up in the tsunami, innocent or guilty," Sandy said.
The Liberal Democrats passed a hard-hitting motion calling for transgressing MPs where appropriate to face criminal prosecution, all MPs to sign up to a new code of conduct, and all MPs to stay within the spirit of any new rules as well as following the letter.
What would you like to do next?
-
Subscribe for updates
Follow the party's activity on...
- Twitter:
- Liberal Democrats
- Facebook:
- Liberal Democrats
- YouTube:
- Liberal Democrats