Author Topic: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son  (Read 2407 times)

Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #15 on: Oct 17, 2019, 10:57:39 AM »
I would limit their expenses to legitimate and traceable claims for business.

The family member is not an employee of the state. They are employed by the MP. The MP pays the wages  and recovers that cost from the State as a legitimate expense.
It's up to the MP who they want to employ, not Parliament or the Civil Service.

Raven

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #16 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:04:44 AM »
Keeping it in the family... ;D

sparky

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #17 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:05:28 AM »
So if they can recover the cost from the state, they can claim they are employing just about any family member even if that member never puts in an hours work a month.

Raven

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #18 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:06:33 AM »
Then there's that.. :o

Diasi

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #19 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:39:06 AM »
So if they can recover the cost from the state, they can claim they are employing just about any family member even if that member never puts in an hours work a month.

Yes sparky, it's a legalised way of working the Parliamentary expenses system for those MPs who wish to do so.

Just like trusts are a legalised way of working the tax & benefit systems for those individuals who wish to do so.
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sparky

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #20 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:54:52 AM »


Yes sparky, it's a legalised way of working the Parliamentary expenses system for those MPs who wish to do so.


So that will be 99% of them, and if they have a problem  finding a family member, Fido the family pet will get the job.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #21 on: Oct 17, 2019, 11:57:52 AM »
Keeping it in the family... ;D

Wouldn't you? Whilst employed by the Civil Service I owned a two branch accountancy practice years ago.
My two daughters' ran the practice with two other employees for me whilst I was a consultant and principal. I would not have trusted anyone outside the family to do that for me.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #22 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:00:06 PM »
So if they can recover the cost from the state, they can claim they are employing just about any family member even if that member never puts in an hours work a month.

That has and will always happen. The MP will be subject to question if they put in an expenses claim for work that was never carried out by their staff. 

Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #23 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:06:37 PM »
Yes sparky, it's a legalised way of working the Parliamentary expenses system for those MPs who wish to do so.

Just like trusts are a legalised way of working the tax & benefit systems for those individuals who wish to do so.

Of course the systems are to be used provided that what people do is legal and above board.

It's nothing different than playing the rail ticket scam. It can be far cheaper to buy 2/3 tickets for a section of travel rather than buy one ticket for the whole journey.

I'm just about to set off on a bus to the large town using my bus pass. I could just as easily use the car and park up anywhere on double yellow lines with my Blue Badge. I save on fuel costs and cost the County Council the cost of the bus travel.

If the system allows itself to be abused in these ways then why not abuse it - it's perfectly legal.

 

Diasi

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #24 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:09:52 PM »
Wouldn't you? Whilst employed by the Civil Service I owned a two branch accountancy practice years ago.
My two daughters' ran the practice with two other employees for me whilst I was a consultant and principal. I would not have trusted anyone outside the family to do that for me.

You seem to have had a charmed life dodging round the rules.

I was not allowed, by the Civil Service, to undertake any activity that could be seen as a conflict with my Civil Service duties.

Therefore I most certainly would not have been allowed to have any involvement whatsoever with the private investigation industry, so IMO you were lucky, as an HMRC Officer, to be allowed to be involved with the accountancy industry.

Of course the systems are to be used provided that what people do is legal and above board.

It's nothing different than playing the rail ticket scam. It can be far cheaper to buy 2/3 tickets for a section of travel rather than buy one ticket for the whole journey.

I'm just about to set off on a bus to the large town using my bus pass. I could just as easily use the car and park up anywhere on double yellow lines with my Blue Badge. I save on fuel costs and cost the County Council the cost of the bus travel.

If the system allows itself to be abused in these ways then why not abuse it - it's perfectly legal.

 

Well by using you logic it could be said it's a scam buying a 2nd class rail ticket instead of a 1st class ticket.

The system operates purely because the majority of people don't abuse it.

If we all followed you the system would be bust.
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Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #25 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:10:54 PM »

Yes sparky, it's a legalised way of working the Parliamentary expenses system for those MPs who wish to do so.


So that will be 99% of them, and if they have a problem  finding a family member, Fido the family pet will get the job.

I doubt the expenses claim for wages paid to the dog would get paid. However there is nothing stopping employing their son or daughter who has just left school with few qualifications. or maybe their granny who was looking for some extra income to top up their State Pension.

Provided that they do something then it is never questioned.

Diasi

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #26 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:16:23 PM »

Provided that they do something then it is never questioned.

And who proves what work was done?
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Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #27 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:21:53 PM »
You seem to have had a charmed life dodging round the rules.

I was not allowed, by the Civil Service, to undertake any activity that could be seen as a conflict with my Civil Service duties.

Therefore I most certainly would not have been allowed to have any involvement whatsoever with the private investigation industry, so IMO you were lucky, as an HMRC Officer, to be allowed to be involved with the accountancy industry.

You are quite correct - civil servants were not allowed to have a secondary job if that job conflicted with their official duties.

However not being actually employed in the accountancy practice but merely there in an advisory role for which I did not receive any remuneration (salary/wages) satisfied Head Office when I asked for clearance. The money that I did receive was based on one annual fee that I charged and paid tax on. You would be surprised how many civil servants hold down at least two jobs - maybe bar work in the evening. taxi driving at night and weekends etc.
Advising on difficult aspects of the work my daughters' carried out could not be seen as contradictory to my civil service duties. You could say that I was fortunate to have my daughters' who were more than able and willing to do the work - in a sort of way they fronted the practice for me.


Goingtoseed

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #28 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:25:24 PM »
And who proves what work was done?

The MP does by submitting an expenses claim. Or are you suggesting that they are gone through with a fine tooth comb looking for evidence to back up the claims? Can you imagine the amount of work needed for every MP and all of the various expenses claims?

Diasi

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Re: Labour MP Apparently Using Her Expenses to Employ Her Son
« Reply #29 on: Oct 17, 2019, 12:28:05 PM »
The MP does by submitting an expenses claim. Or are you suggesting that they are gone through with a fine tooth comb looking for evidence to back up the claims? Can you imagine the amount of work needed for every MP and all of the various expenses claims?

Lol, you do make me laugh. ;D

You are quite correct - civil servants were not allowed to have a secondary job if that job conflicted with their official duties.

However not being actually employed in the accountancy practice but merely there in an advisory role for which I did not receive any remuneration (salary/wages) satisfied Head Office when I asked for clearance. The money that I did receive was based on one annual fee that I charged and paid tax on. You would be surprised how many civil servants hold down at least two jobs - maybe bar work in the evening. taxi driving at night and weekends etc.
Advising on difficult aspects of the work my daughters' carried out could not be seen as contradictory to my civil service duties. You could say that I was fortunate to have my daughters' who were more than able and willing to do the work - in a sort of way they fronted the practice for me.


I set up a taxi business & employed a couple of drivers while in the Civil Service as it didn't conflict with my duties, but there was no way whatsoever that the Department would have sanctioned me acting as an adviser, paid or unpaid, to a firm of private investigators.

Maybe HMRC operated differently.
Make every day count, each day is precious.
"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal".  (Cassandra)