Freedom Come All Ye
Freedom of Information (FOI) is what finally brought the MPs' expenses scandal out onto the open.
Even the Prime Minister is now a big fan of Freedom of Information – and says that FOI should go much further - by shining a light into other dark corners of public life.
We agree – because that’s exactly what we’ve been saying for years!
But until the floodgates opened up – largely thanks to the press, it has to be said – ordinary members of the public were completely in the dark about what their MPs were up to with their expenses.
But persistence paid off in the end – people inside and outside Westminster became increasingly disgusted at the attempts to keep things secret – hidden from public scrutiny.
Documents were leaked to the press and - to their credit - even some MPs were prepared to stand up and be counted.
And the same is true when it comes to equal pay.
Some employers still make it very difficult for employees (and others) to understand how different council jobs are paid – relative to one another.
Why do some pay structures obscure as much as they reveal – is it because they have something to hide?
Some employers still conceal how different groups of employees are paid – others refuse to explain how jobs are assessed or scored under their new Job Evaluation (JE) schemes.
So what do we need in relation to equal pay?
We need the same determination to bring things out into the open – because daylight really is the best disinfectant.
‘Openness’ and ‘Transparency’ are the new watchwords for MPs' expenses – and what’s sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander.
We want MPs, MSPs and even local councillors to be standing up for their constituents – they don’t even need to take sides in relation to individual equal pay claims.
All they need to do is to ask sensible questions – and demand straight answers.
We plan to share details of some recent Freedom of Information with readers – via the blog site.
The more readers claimants that join in - by asking their own MPs, MSPs and councillors to lend a hand – the sooner all the facts will be on the table.
And the facts as ever – will speak for themselves.
Even the Prime Minister is now a big fan of Freedom of Information – and says that FOI should go much further - by shining a light into other dark corners of public life.
We agree – because that’s exactly what we’ve been saying for years!
But until the floodgates opened up – largely thanks to the press, it has to be said – ordinary members of the public were completely in the dark about what their MPs were up to with their expenses.
But persistence paid off in the end – people inside and outside Westminster became increasingly disgusted at the attempts to keep things secret – hidden from public scrutiny.
Documents were leaked to the press and - to their credit - even some MPs were prepared to stand up and be counted.
And the same is true when it comes to equal pay.
Some employers still make it very difficult for employees (and others) to understand how different council jobs are paid – relative to one another.
Why do some pay structures obscure as much as they reveal – is it because they have something to hide?
Some employers still conceal how different groups of employees are paid – others refuse to explain how jobs are assessed or scored under their new Job Evaluation (JE) schemes.
So what do we need in relation to equal pay?
We need the same determination to bring things out into the open – because daylight really is the best disinfectant.
‘Openness’ and ‘Transparency’ are the new watchwords for MPs' expenses – and what’s sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander.
We want MPs, MSPs and even local councillors to be standing up for their constituents – they don’t even need to take sides in relation to individual equal pay claims.
All they need to do is to ask sensible questions – and demand straight answers.
We plan to share details of some recent Freedom of Information with readers – via the blog site.
The more readers claimants that join in - by asking their own MPs, MSPs and councillors to lend a hand – the sooner all the facts will be on the table.
And the facts as ever – will speak for themselves.
