MPs award themselves a three-month summer holiday - that's one week
longer than last year
By Tim Shipman
Last updated at 8:19 PM on 20th April 2009
MPs will take an 82-day summer holiday this year - seven days more than
members enjoyed last year.
The 12-week break is 12 days longer than their summer recess of just
five years ago.
The news has provoked claims that the Government is out of touch and
that politicians are more concerned with feathering their own nests than
solving Britain's problems.
Commons chamber
'Drift': MPs complain there is a lack of legislation going through
Parliament and have attacked the move to extend the summer holiday by a
week
It means MPs can take more than twice as much time off over summer than
most workers are entitled to during an entire year.
By the end of the Parliamentary year, they will have worked just 143
days in Westminster for their annual salary of £64,700 --17 days fewer
than last year.
MPs, who returned from their two-week Easter holiday yesterday, are
already looking forward to July 22 when they begin the longest break of
the entire
Parliament. They will be away until well into September.
Even before the holiday details were publicised yesterday, the Prime
Minister had been under fire from his MPs for promoting a thin
government programme.
Several debates have been held without votes and there have been
complaints that MPs have had little opportunity to hold the Government
to account in recent substantive votes on legislative issues.
Alan Duncan, the Shadow Leader of the House, said: 'Rather than
Ministers packing their bags early and heading off to the beach, MPs
should be staying here to scrutinise this failing team.'
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said: 'People will be stunned that at
the height of an economic crisis Parliament will not meet for 12 weeks.'
Former Labour minister Frank Field added: 'Week after week MPs have been
turning up with almost no serious work to do.'
MPs' break arrangements were agreed by Parliamentary business managers,
including Harriet Harman, the leader of the Commons, Labour Chief Whip
Nick Brown and Lords Chief Whip Lord Bassam.
A government official said the calendar was agreed in talks with Tory
whips.
A spokesman for Miss Harman said: 'A number of factors are taken into
account when decisions are made on dates of recesses.'
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