Well, what do you know …?
Simon Campion-Brown pours salt on the wound
Today I return, albeit briefly, to the subject of MPs salaries – and with just a smidgeon of reluctance, borne of not wishing to flog a dead horse.
I noticed this weekend, on the website of The Guardian/Observer, a report upon the findings of economists Professor Naci Mocan and Professor Duha Altindag – published in the Economic Journal – following a study of the changes to the salary structure of MEPs serving in the European Parliament.
Apparently, after MEPs salaries were ‘equalised’ across all EU member states in July 2009, some MEPs has pay rises and others, e.g. those in Austria, Ireland and Italy, had their salaries reduced. This allowed the academics to study the effects upon salaries changes between 2004 and 2011, producing an interesting result.
Apparently, reducing politicians’ pay prompts in an increase in their parliamentary attendance, whilst those who received pay increases attended less often and asked fewer questions.
See here, on the website of THE GUARDIAN
