OVERWORKED AND UNDERPAID.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 3883, 13 December 1928, Page 2

OVERWORKED AND UNDERPAID.

M.P’s. WANT A £2OO RISE

Meetings attended by members from all sections of the House irrespective of party have been held this week and at a final gathering yesterday morning a committee was set up to wait on the Prime Minister to ask him to consider raising the amount at present provided for.

The amount decided upon as a basis of argument is £7OO, an increase of £2OO upon the honorarium authorised in the Civil List Act, but £250 more than private members are at present receiving in view of the ten per cent, reduction made under the Public Expenditure Adjustment Act in 1921. The committee approached Sir Joseph Ward, but members do not expect any action to be taken immediately realising that action should be deferred at least until after consideration has been given to the restoration of “cuts”, made in the civil servants’ salaries, and until the question' of increases in unemployment relief rates of 12/- and 9/- per day has been gone into. The biggest factor which weighs with members in their demand for increases is that the time they give to the discharge of public business in the interests of their constituencies precludes their giving proper attention to their own priyate business practice, involving in many cases considerable monetary sacrifice.

On the other hand, in addition to the objections already stated it is argued by some that to increase the honoraria ivould perhaps encourage the introduction of an element of professionalism into political life.