Lording it Up
I came across this entry in the House of Lords register of interests which shows that Lord John 'Two Jags' Prescott has been a very busy bee of late - though I find it very strange that fees are recorded without stating the amounts of money involved.
Now I don't grudge John Prescott his money, but what I do question is the fact that he's retired from the House of Commons on a very generous 'final salary' pension - yet feels the need to draw a £300.00 a day (tax free) attendance allowance in the House of Lords whilst having all these other irons in the fire as well.
So, I would either stop people drawing such big pensions from the public purse if all they are doing having retired is to re-enter the workforce - or at least I would abate or reduce their pensions by the amount of the extra money they earn from continuing to make money from public funds.
Because if the logic is that former public servants deserve a generous pension to enjoy their retirement - then why do they insist on getting paid a big fee for giving something back via the House of Lords, why don't they just consider it as 'voluntary work' for which they only get paid their expenses.
Likewise with the BBC which is paid for out of the licence fee tax and yet has been handing millions of pounds over to departing senior executives - as if the money was their own, as opposed to being raised by public prescription.
Now I don't grudge John Prescott his money, but what I do question is the fact that he's retired from the House of Commons on a very generous 'final salary' pension - yet feels the need to draw a £300.00 a day (tax free) attendance allowance in the House of Lords whilst having all these other irons in the fire as well.
So, I would either stop people drawing such big pensions from the public purse if all they are doing having retired is to re-enter the workforce - or at least I would abate or reduce their pensions by the amount of the extra money they earn from continuing to make money from public funds.
Because if the logic is that former public servants deserve a generous pension to enjoy their retirement - then why do they insist on getting paid a big fee for giving something back via the House of Lords, why don't they just consider it as 'voluntary work' for which they only get paid their expenses.
Likewise with the BBC which is paid for out of the licence fee tax and yet has been handing millions of pounds over to departing senior executives - as if the money was their own, as opposed to being raised by public prescription.
| Lord Prescott |
| Category 2: Remunerated employment, office, profession etc. |
| Fee received from MGN Limited Company to write a weekly column in Sunday Mirror newspaper |
| Fee received from Performing Artistes, F4 Group Ltd, for delivering a keynote speech at International Confex on 19 March 2013 at ExCeL Centre, London; travel costs were also paid by the company |
| Fee received from BBC (13 June 2013) for appearing on "This Week" programme; this was his second appearance this year, which meant the amount he received exceeded the stated single source limit (previous appearance 28 February 2013) |
| Addressed Chartered Institute of Housing Conference, Manchester, 27 June 2013; fee and travelling expenses paid by Ocean Media Group Ltd |
| Fee received from ITV plc (28 June 2013), for appearing on ‘Britain’s Secret Treasures’ programme; overnight accommodation and travel expenses also paid by the company |
| Fee received from BBC Northern Ireland (1 May 2013) for an appearance on the "Nolan Show"; flights, hotel and subsistence were also paid by BBC Northern Ireland |
| Fee received from Citywire Financial Publishers Ltd (17 October 2013) for speech given at Wealth Managers Retreat Conference in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire; travel expenses also paid by the company |
| Fee received from Hat Trick Productions (24 October 2013) for participation in BBC’s ‘Have I Got News For You’ television programme; travel expenses also paid by the company |
| Fee received from ITV for an appearance on "Through The Keyhole" television programme (filmed on 23 July 2013 for broadcast later in the year); fee paid by ITV Services Ltd, ITV Granada, Manchester |
| Fee received from The Investment Property Forum (9 November 2012) for a speech given on 18 October 2012 to their Members in Birmingham; hotel accommodation and travel expenses were also paid by The Investment Property Forum |
| Category 7: Overseas visits |
| Visit to Delhi, India, 29 January - 3 February 2013, to speak at the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit 2013; flights, transfers, hotel accommodation and subsistence paid by Asian Development Bank |
| Visit to Reykjavik, Iceland, 10-13 April 2013, to attend Reykjavik Congress on Human Rights as guest speaker; flights, hotel and subsistence were paid by the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Berlin |
| Visit to China, 16-20 April 2013, at the invitation of Globe International to meet Ministers from the Government of China and the National People’s Congress of China; flights and hotel were paid by Globe International, subsistence and travel in China was met by British Embassy and Globe International |
| Visit to Oslo, Norway, 8 November 2012, to give keynote speech at the Kongsberg Cluster Summit 2012; fee, flights, hotel accommodation and transfers were paid by NMP Live Ltd |
| Category 10: Non-financial interests (a) |
| Board Member, Hull Kingston Rovers Rugby League Club |
