PARLIAMENTARY SALARIES

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27736, 13 August 1955, Page 3

PARLIAMENTARY SALARIES

Sir, — I sincerely hope that Mr Nash and all Labour members will protest strongly at the proposed rise in salary for Members of Parliament. That a minority Tory Government (which is in power simply because the Social Credit section of The National Party split the vote) should bring forward such an idea, shows how the present Government has lost touch with the people. The average man in the street thinks that members of Parliament are already overpaid.—Yours, etc., CITIZEN. August 12, 1955.

Sir, —I wish to refer to the statement made in your editorial column of “The Press” of today, in which you compared the salaries of Parliamentarians and a high-paid watersider. If you afe working it on a comparative basis, how could you omit to refer to the vast differentiation in hours actually worked during the year? A watersider, in order to earn the amount stated in your columns, would have to put in many hours overtime every week. I therefore fail to see how you could possibly compare the earnings of the respective persons.— Yours, etc., BLUE AND WHITE. August 12, 1955.