(Replying to PARENT post)

The pay is a large issue. In the UK, being a Member of Parliament, you get around £65k. That doesn't compare well to business jobs of similar responsibility etc.

Even the prime minister is on less pay than several civil servants which is ridiculous. No wonder we have so many people in government from wealthy families.

I don't remember quite where it was but I read that somewhere in Asia the government/MPs get paid a million or so, which results in better people, and obviously less corruption/fiddling accounts etc.

👤axod🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

Even more than salary in the US is the cost of getting elected. The CA governors race is going into the 9 digits. It cost millions to elect a congressman, 10's of millions for a senator. The only one with that kind of money are unions, corporations, and rich candidates. The candidates are bought and have to deliver. This is corruption on a massive and pervasive scale. And it's legal.
👤russell🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

Wow... that's worse than I thought.

I've often wondered if part of the problem with mismanagement and corruption in government is that politicians are actually underpaid. Anyone really good wants to go into business or marketing, fields that demand similar skills but that pay way better. Corruption becomes a problem because it's the only way to get a raise...

👤api🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

Singapore tries to keep their public sector compensation on par with corporate executives. It's a good idea IMO.
👤jacoblyles🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

Another reason is that to get into politics, graduates normally have to do unpaid internships to get a foot in the door. This is only really an option if your family is well off.

The prime minister gets to live in 10 Downing Street, and can look forward to lucrative book deals, after dinner speeches and consulting gigs (Blair was getting £500k to advise JP Morgan). This isn't true for most jobs. It's not such a bad deal, but obviously most people don't get that far.

👤SandB0x🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

> In the UK, being a Member of Parliament, you get around £65k.

Yes, but until recently their salaries were being supplemented by very generous expenses. They were also allowed to take on other work, subject to certain rules.

> Even the prime minister is on less pay than several civil servants which is ridiculous.

Former prime ministers can earn a fortune, however, just look at Tony Blair. Retired MPs can also cash in, to a lesser extent, on their time in office.

👤baha_man🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

You could argue that considering the public perception of MPs right now £65k isn't too bad for them.
👤kierank🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

That would be in Singapore. http://mysingaporenews.blogspot.com/2009/04/top-30-highest-p...
👤hboon🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

By what measure is 65k a small amount of money, from what i remember the average wage in the uk is ~26k, and many full time workers earn much less than this.
👤raystar🕑15y🔼0🗨️0

(Replying to PARENT post)

170k in US.
👤cjoh🕑15y🔼0🗨️0