Time to start restoring public's faith

AN UNREMARKED aspect of the otherwise remarkable election which has just concluded is the lack of controversy over what many thought might be the defining issue, MPs' expenses.

Before the television debates changed the course of the campaign, politicians of all parties feared that voters would be reluctant to engage on the big issues of the day and concentrate on their pay and perks.

The MPs' expenses scandal has been raised but it has not generated as much heat as it might because there is now a cross-party agreement on reform.

But as we look forward to a new parliament we should remember that its predecessor did more to debase and undermine the once noble calling of public service than any other parliament in modern political history.

So we say a not-very-fond farewell to the MPs who claimed for duck houses and flat-screen televisions; who employed gardeners on the taxpayer; who "flipped" their designated main homes for personal gain; and who claimed for mortgages already repaid.

Although the rules have been changed, we should not forget that this only came about because this scandal was exposed by good journalism.

We fervently hope that the new parliament, by being more transparent, and through the behaviour of the large influx of new MPs who replace their disgraced predecessors, will go some way to restoring people's faith in politicians.