Northern Ireland Assembly Members (Pay) Bill Debate

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Department: Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Assembly Members (Pay) Bill

Desmond Swayne Excerpts
2nd reading: House of Commons & 3rd reading: House of Commons
Wednesday 21st March 2018

(6 years, 7 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Northern Ireland Assembly Members (Pay) Act 2018 View all Northern Ireland Assembly Members (Pay) Act 2018 Debates Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Karen Bradley Portrait Karen Bradley
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At Question Time, we had a question about the transparency of donations and I am pleased that the House has passed the order to start to increase such transparency. I know that the hon. Gentleman is keen to see further work on that, but I ask that we should see how the order works first. If more needs to be done, we will need to look at that.

Desmond Swayne Portrait Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)
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I am surprised but delighted when, during election campaigns, I continue to receive a salary, notwithstanding the fact that the House has been dissolved. What is the difference in principle between us receiving salaries when Parliament has been dissolved and Members of the Assembly receiving salaries when there is no Assembly? I do not mean to be difficult, but I would not want us to set an unhelpful and unwelcome precedent.

Karen Bradley Portrait Karen Bradley
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My right hon. Friend always asks helpful questions; he is not known for doing anything other. We are looking to have the power in this House to vary the salaries of Members who serve in the Northern Ireland Assembly—MLAs—in response to the fact that there has been no functioning Assembly for 14 months and the clear public concern about people receiving salaries when the Assembly is not sitting. He is correct, of course, that Members of Parliament receive a salary for the period in which an election runs, but I believe that the rules are different for the period when Parliament is dissolved as opposed to when it is sitting. I understand his concerns, but I assure him that this relates specifically to MLAs’ pay, not MPs’ pay.