It is the aim of every politician to stand out in the crowd and be noticed. That is a sure way to attract votes the next time an election comes around, but being noticed must be for the right reason and any politician who crosses a line that divides party politics can expect to be mercilessly pilloried. Such was the fate of Bronwyn Bishop, the speaker in the lower house of the Australian parliament.
There is no doubt that her choice of mode of travel was excessive. It all started when she used a helicopter to fly her from Melbourne to Geelong and this cost the government over five thousand dollars. The opposition swooped when it was revealed this journey was to attend a Liberal party fundraiser and not official business related to the job of house Speaker.
It was all down hill from that point. Madam Speaker had expensive tastes in travel and a litany of flights and other forms of luxury travel emerged. Her position became untenable and eventually she announced that she would relinquish the Speaker's chair and move to the backbench. For the opposition, this was a political victory.
In the cold, hard light of day that may prove to be a Pyrrhic victory. The " entitlement dragon " has emerged from it's cave and a host of politicians - which include both the prime minister and the leader of the opposition - have owned up to " accounting errors " and paid back money claimed under travel entitlement rules. One upshot of the Bronwyn Bishop saga will be pressure to rewrite the entitlement rules that apply to politicians - and it is unlikely that this will be contained to just travel.
It is an inescapable fact of life that whatever rule of entitlement comes with the job of being a politicians, that rule will be carefully examined to find ways that unintended consequences can be made to fit within it's scope. To a great degree, the interpretation of that entitlement settles on a very fine line.
Because each politician represents an electoral district in his or her state of origin there is an entitlement to hotel accommodation in Canberra when parliament is sitting. In past years - when housing was a whole lot cheaper - many political families arranged for the politicians partner to buy a Canberra home and charge the equivalent of that hotel rate on sitting days when the politician used the home as their Canberra address. This was perfectly legal, but certainly an unintended outcome when that entitlement rule was first put in place.
A labyrinth of entitlements exist when it comes to reasons for travel. Politicians are expected to keep abreast of world affairs and to investigate matters that come before the parliament. As a consequence, they are entitled to "study tours " to far places and in some circumstances that enables them to be accompanied by spouses - and sometimes children get to accompany their parents. It is expected that the result of these trips will be reported to the parliament.
Over the years, what are termed " electoral expenses " have assumed a broader tone. A member is expected to establish an electoral office in their district and both the rental and staff are at government expense. In many cases, those electoral staff are family members or close associates and the kit required for adequate communications seems ever growing. Each member has an allowance for postage stamps and printing of electoral letters to keep voters informed on matters being progressed - and all that is expanded should the member be elevated to the ministry.
The " pecking order " within parliament is vast and complex. At the top of the pyramid sits the prime minister and the leader of the opposition. Next are the various ministers - and shadow ministers - and below them functionaries with lesser titles who hold power within the operating arms of departments - and all are served by entitlements within the public service framework.
The job of "Speaker " is certainly one of the plum positions held in the parliamentary pantheon. Not only does it come with an elevated pay level, it brings with it a suite of offices and commensurate staff at senior ministerial level - and ongoing financial recognition in later retirement. A previous speaker insisted on having robes of office tailored - at public expense.
Now that the Bronwyn Bishop brouhaha has reached a conclusion the politicians will be very keen tone down the debate and get things back to normal. They have gained a political scalp, but at the price of freeing the political Entitlement Dragon and bringing it to public attention. Now the media will have a cause to follow - and entitlement spending of all types will be subjected to ongoing scrutiny.
No doubt entitlements will be subjected to some sort of public enquiry and the outcome will be a new order with rules and qualifications in place to ensure there are no more scandals that involve travel and the public purse. Of course, politicians being politicians - this will be carefully crafted to have just the right degree of ambiguity that nothing really changes.
After all, it is parliament that decrees what rules apply to the very people who set those rules. As some would term it. Putting the foxes in charge of running the hen house !
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