Britannist

From the Daily Mail 2.11.2006 (brief extracts from Mail taken, abbreviated and re-written): MPs' gold-plated retirement packages are to be funded with £11.9 million a year from the Treasury for the next 14 years, according to official estimates. It came as MPs prompted further anger by voting to give themselves a new 'communications allowance' expected to cost taxpayers another £6 million a year.

Commons Leader Jack Straw said it was designed to 'assist with the important task of improving the engagement of the House with the public'. He said while 50 years ago, members received an average of 12 to 15 letters a week, they now received more than 300. The Tories - and some Labour MPs - opposed the move.

Labour's Chris Mullin MP said: 'There is no demand from our constituents to receive glossy brochures through the post containing 10, 16, 20 photographs of the said member behaving like a fairy godmother. 'This is vanity publishing and it should not be funded out of public funds.'

Tory (Conservative) MP Julie Kirkbride dubbed the proposed new allowance an exercise in 'save our seats for the Labour party', claiming it would be used by Labour MPs in marginal seats to blitz constituents in an attempt to shore up support.