MSPs have reacted angrily to revelations that the chief constable of Scotland's largest police force was awarded almost £65,000 of perks on top of his £170,000 salary.Here is a response from a member of the public.Stephen House, of Strathclyde Police, received a bonus, a housing allowance and even a council tax subsidy last year. The taxpayer also footed the tax bill for his private use of a car.
Is the chief worth all this money? How can we tell when he's in the public sector? The best way is to have police chiefs stand for election. That way they'd have to spend their time providing the sort of service wanted by the public instead of lording over us as the para-military wing of the Labour party.
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James higham
para-military wing of the Labour party
Nicely put.
1 September 2009, 19:28:22 GMT+01:00
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David Farrer
CF: Voting should be restricted to taxpayers. No representation without taxation.
JB/PH: Ideally we should have anarcho-capitalism in which property owners contract for police services.
JB: Good point, but sadly on lots of matters the SNP are just a tartanised version of Labour's nanny-state values. Perhaps I should have said "the paramilitary wing of the nanny-state class".
SD: I can't see much likelihood of an inexperienced candidate getting elected. On the other hand, was it not the case a few decades ago that police chiefs were often senior ex-military figures who were outside the "canteen culture" of the force? Probably not a bad idea.
1 September 2009, 19:21:41 GMT+01:00
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Sam Duncan
But election is the only qualification for politicians, Philip. Presumably candidates for Chief Constable would have to have a certain amount - say ten years' - experience in a Scottish police force. We're not talking about electing failed parliamentary candidates here. At least I hope we aren't.
I'd also hope to see some rule against party political backing as well, but I'm not holding my breath on that one...
1 September 2009, 16:44:06 GMT+01:00
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Philip Hunt
Polticians stand for election, and I hope you're not saying that all of them are worth the money.
1 September 2009, 13:12:45 GMT+01:00
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john b
Yes, recent events in Westminster prove that making people stand for election is a guaranteed way of ensuring they justify the enormous salaries, expenses and allowances they receive.
(also, how on earth do Scottish police chiefs manage to act as 'the paramilitary wing of the Labour Party', when Labour has no power over Scottish legal or police matters?)
1 September 2009, 12:47:00 GMT+01:00
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Colin Finlay
Stand for election? Yes, but the geographical constituency really should (in the interests of the ultimate, proletarian beneficiaries of modern democracy)be community - focused. For example,Glasgow's Easterhouse and Castlemilk denizens , those famous repositories of the Enlightenments' (ultimately unsustainable) values, must have both voter and candidate pre-qualification which will include membership of any political party dedicated to the interests of the least productive and, it necessarily follows, least valuable segment of society.
1 September 2009, 09:48:29 GMT+01:00
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