英国大臣辞职称年薪12万无法养家_时事

英国大臣辞职称年薪12万无法养家

Mr Simmonds is paid £89,435 a year as a minister and MP and is entitled to £27,875 a year to rent and pay for a flat with him and his family.

However he said this did not “stretch” far enough and so he stayed in hotels during the week when he was in London. His wife is also paid up to £25,000 a year to act as his office manager.

In an interview with The Telegraph he said: “I have to stay in a different hotel room every week and any parent would hate that – and I do.

“The accommodation allowance needs to provide for families – and it doesn’t. When my children are on holiday they can’t come and stay with me in London - I can’t see them.”

“It has a really negative impact on the quality of life. I am not the only one who feels like this, but I am the only one at the moment who is doing anything about it.”

He said the new expenses system – which was reformed after the 2009 scandal which was exposed by the Telegraph - was putting people off from becoming MPs.

He said: “The pendulum has swung too far back the other way. It is almost impossible for an MP and a government minister with children to have a normal family life and that can only be a deterrent to people wanting to come into Parliament.”

Half as many people were applying to be MPs today compared in 2001, he said, adding that “the negative impact on family life is a significant part of that”.