Just how bad is it going to get?

Can we trust our MPs and Lords to look into the wrong-doings of the bankers? Are they people of probity and honour? Are any of them tainted by the culture?

Well this matter ought to be considered directly and indirectly. An excellent study was made of the salaries earned by MPs before they entered the House compared with the salaries they made as they left. The research was done at the height of NewLabour and Conservative MPs emerged as more successful than their political counterparts. Tory MPs appeared to use their time in Parliament to acquire non-executive directorships and part-time positions which supplemented their income. As a great many NewLabour MPs shared Tory attitudes towards money-making this situation may well have leveled up recently. Whilst this has been much to the politicians benefit it has not been to our (the citizens) benefit. The Expenses scandal ran across all parties and showed the extent to which the greed culture could be found in  backbenchers and Ministers and Shadow Ministers. Many of the worse culprits are still in power acting as though butter would not melt in their mouths. And some of them are on the Treasury Committee!

Not all of them were tainted. The Chairman of the Treasury Select Committee is a ray of hope. He has a reputation for being honest and emerged well out of the Expenses scandal. He has a number of old lags on his Committee who milked the system for all it was worth though. How much credibility will they have? 

Then there are a couple of newcomers on his Committee who may well be out of their depth. When faced with such venal bare-faced liars most people would be out of their depth. 

And in the background simmering away is the knowledge that the Tory party have been largely bankrolled by these bastards. Labour have not been clean either with ‘Cash for Honours’ and even the LibDems have had their brush with Brown to taint them. How much will they bite the hand that feeds them? 

We need the approach of poacher turned gamekeeper. Not only with the bankers - but also with the tax avoiders too. 

Our political elite had better realise that our patience is running out. Talk of revolution is in the air.