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Gleaner EDITORIAL: Take MPs' pay out of partisan

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  • Gleaner EDITORIAL: Take MPs' pay out of partisan

    EDITORIAL - Take MPs' pay out of partisan politics
    published: Thursday | December 20, 2007


    The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), now in government, is implementing the salary increases for parliamentarians that were recommended by the previous administration, but frozen for a lack of consensus.

    It was, perhaps, good tactics for Bruce Golding, who was then the Opposition Leader, to have resisted the implementation of the hike. The JLP, under his leadership, couldn't then be accused of seeking to line the pockets of MPs when taxpayers were feeling economic pain.

    Mr. Golding may have been genuine in his expressed concerns. But in the circumstances, the cynics, and not only Mike Henry, who is now the Transport and Works Minister, could have been counted on to raise more than just an eyebrow.

    It is important, therefore, to remove this matter of how parliamentarians are paid from the strategic consideration of partisan politics, as well as from the cynicism of a public that tends to approach any action by politicians with profound scepticism.

    In this regard, Mr. Golding and his administration need not, as the saying goes, attempt to reinvent the wheel. There have been, since 2003, a reasonably good set of recommendations of how to approach this matter, around which the previous administration shilly-shallied.

    A committee appointed by the P.J. Patterson administration recommended that we move away from the current practice of linking the salaries of ministers and MPs to that of civil servants.

    This approach raises the potential, even if only in appearance, of conflict of interest. When a minister is negotiating the salaries of members of the civil service, there should be no assumption that he, as an individual, and parliamentarians, as a class, have a stake in the outcome of those negotiations.

    It is important, we feel, that Mr. Golding moves quickly to establish the Permanent Salaries Review Committee which was recommended to conduct periodic reviews of the salaries of parliamentarians. Such an approach would help to take the issue of the pay out of the realm of national cynicism and imbue the process with a level of trust.

    There are other elements of the committee's report, rejected by the former Government, that, in our view, would help build the confidence of the public in the process of governance and thus ought to be pursued.

    Among the most immediate of those is the proposal for linking annual increments for MPs to economic growth and the rate of inflation, but subject to a cap that is equal to half the rate of inflation of Jamaica's major trading partners. The assumption here is that if Jamaica recorded no growth and/or recorded high inflation, parliamentarians would be penalised with no or low salary hikes.

    There would be incentive for the executive to pursue rational, growth-oriented politics and for backbenchers to be vocal against inappropriate policy mixes. This might help to encourage a new level of intellectual dynamism in the legislature.

    The committee's proposal for the funding of constituency offices for MPs, but tying disbursements to annual accountability and transparency reporting by parliamentarians, is eminently sensible. People will know what the constituency representatives claim to have done and what they plan to do, thereby having measures against which MPs can be held accountable.

    Despite his stumbles, Mr. Golding has come to office promising a new quality of governance. These are aids to the process he should happily embrace.

    The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.
    "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

  • #2
    Lazie?
    ...and, please say whether this consistent with what your 'boys' said previous to the elections?
    Thank you!
    "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

    Comment


    • #3
      No increase for MPs until Cabinet gives go ahead, says Nelson
      Denies reports of a 20% hike

      BALFORD HENRY, Observer writer
      balfordh@jamaicaobserver.com
      Thursday, December 20, 2007




      THE $96-million included in the first supplementary estimates for 2007/2008 to cover salary payments to parliamentarians, will not be expended until cabinet gives the go-ahead in January.

      Minister Without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and Planning, Senator Dwight Nelson, confirmed yesterday that until the cabinet makes a decision, the increase cannot be implemented hence there is no implementing agreement.

      Senator Nelson said that the cabinet had deferred a final decision until January when it resumes.
      He also denied reports of a 20 per cent increase. He said that the increases actually included a 16 per cent increase for 2006 and an additional five per cent for 2007, in line with the increases granted to civil servants under MOU2.

      Nelson noted that the parliamentarians' salaries have been frozen since 2003.
      "In 2003, when public sector employees' salaries were increased, the parliamentarians did not get an increase. Like the public servants, their salaries were frozen in 2004 and 2005. Since then, they were due the increases granted under the MOU for 2006 and 2007, but did not receive them," the minister explained.

      Minister of Finance and Planning, Audley Shaw, told the Observer on Tuesday, after the House of Representatives approved the estimates, that the $96 million had been included in the supplementary expenditures, because it is expected that cabinet will sign off on the issue in January and the increases implemented before the end of the financial year.

      "The $96 million represents the additional increments for Parliamentarians over a two-year period, 2006/2007 and 2007/2008. It was agreed, in the parliamentary committee, that increases to parliamentarians should be based on public sector salary increases under the MOU," Shaw explained
      "Essentially, what you must bear in mind is that, the last time parliamentarians received a salary increase was in 2001/2002, so there was a four-year wait. They should have got the increases under MOU2. As Opposition we said at the time that as long as it was capped to 20 per cent over two years, which is what the public sector got, we would support it. We are just carrying out now what the previous government should have implemented," he added.

      He said that the delay was partly due to the fact that the previous PNP government wanted the then JLP Opposition to move the resolution in the House of Representatives for the approval of the increases, but they refused.

      "We refused. We said you are government, govern. We are government now, so it is up to us to deal with it," Shaw said.

      A salaries review committee appointed by the previous government, and chaired by Oliver Clarke, had recommended that a Permanent Salaries Committee (PSC) should be set up to examine and recommend periodic increases to the salary and allowances (both parliamentary and constituency) of Parliamentarians (both MP's and Senators) on a defined basis.
      "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Karl View Post
        No increase for MPs until Cabinet gives go ahead, says Nelson
        Denies reports of a 20% hike

        BALFORD HENRY, Observer writer
        balfordh@jamaicaobserver.com
        Thursday, December 20, 2007



        THE $96-million included in the first supplementary estimates for 2007/2008 to cover salary payments to parliamentarians, will not be expended until cabinet gives the go-ahead in January.

        Minister Without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and Planning, Senator Dwight Nelson, confirmed yesterday that until the cabinet makes a decision, the increase cannot be implemented hence there is no implementing agreement.

        Senator Nelson said that the cabinet had deferred a final decision until January when it resumes.
        He also denied reports of a 20 per cent increase. He said that the increases actually included a 16 per cent increase for 2006 and an additional five per cent for 2007, in line with the increases granted to civil servants under MOU2.

        Nelson noted that the parliamentarians' salaries have been frozen since 2003.
        "In 2003, when public sector employees' salaries were increased, the parliamentarians did not get an increase. Like the public servants, their salaries were frozen in 2004 and 2005. Since then, they were due the increases granted under the MOU for 2006 and 2007, but did not receive them," the minister explained.

        Minister of Finance and Planning, Audley Shaw, told the Observer on Tuesday, after the House of Representatives approved the estimates, that the $96 million had been included in the supplementary expenditures, because it is expected that cabinet will sign off on the issue in January and the increases implemented before the end of the financial year.

        "The $96 million represents the additional increments for Parliamentarians over a two-year period, 2006/2007 and 2007/2008. It was agreed, in the parliamentary committee, that increases to parliamentarians should be based on public sector salary increases under the MOU," Shaw explained
        "Essentially, what you must bear in mind is that, the last time parliamentarians received a salary increase was in 2001/2002, so there was a four-year wait. They should have got the increases under MOU2. As Opposition we said at the time that as long as it was capped to 20 per cent over two years, which is what the public sector got, we would support it. We are just carrying out now what the previous government should have implemented," he added.

        He said that the delay was partly due to the fact that the previous PNP government wanted the then JLP Opposition to move the resolution in the House of Representatives for the approval of the increases, but they refused.

        "We refused. We said you are government, govern. We are government now, so it is up to us to deal with it," Shaw said.

        A salaries review committee appointed by the previous government, and chaired by Oliver Clarke, had recommended that a Permanent Salaries Committee (PSC) should be set up to examine and recommend periodic increases to the salary and allowances (both parliamentary and constituency) of Parliamentarians (both MP's and Senators) on a defined basis.
        We not going to increase MPs salaries... (righteous indignation - emoticon!
        ...but, we shall!

        JLP concept of truth, honesty and leadership?! Right?
        "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

        Comment

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