t appears that the big pay rise is the one that Bermuda's overachievers have all been waiting for. By the next election, our "brightest and best" will have abandoned their successful careers, grateful that they've finally been given the opportunity to put their brains to work for the good of the community and serve in Parliament.I think not. It is my guess that our "brightest and best" will stay on their chosen career paths. What the increase will do, is lure the fair-to-middling among us into public service in search of better pay.

As put by a member of Team Brightest and Best: "I wouldn't be prepared to put up with all the crap. The problem as I see it is it's a vicious circle. Our politicians today are incompetent and self-serving. I wouldn't want to spend all day with them."

If we are to be honest, our parliamentarians are overpaid. And I mean all of them. The Opposition is weak, while the Government has only proven its proficiency in squandering the public purse.

What are we paying for? Hot air or incompetence, perhaps? Were those same people judged by private sector standards on the basis of their performance as MPs, none of them would get a raise. Several would be fired.

Do I need to point out Premier Alex Scott's inability to manage his Cabinet? Do I need to highlight Health Minister Patrice Minors' apparent disinterest in raising the standard of elder care? Why are we still waiting for CCTV cameras? Why are our schools in such disarray? Our public accounts are in the worst state they've ever been, with $800 million still unaccounted for. The affordable housing that was promised is yet to be delivered. Our Environment Ministry is selling our protected lands to the highest bidder and allowing those who rape them without permission to go unpunished. And as for human rights....

What a shambles. And they want a raise. Outrageous.

Members of the Senate will determine whether the Premier's pay packet increases by 80 per cent ? to $200,000. If the proposal is approved, Ministers' salaries will increase from $88,856 to $150,000 for full-time Ministers and $100,000 for their part-time Cabinet colleagues. Backbenchers would see their pay rise from $39,000 to $50,000.

Much has been made of the fact that the MPs didn't determine the salaries themselves. The figures were, in fact, decided by an eight-member Salaries Review Board appointed by the Premier after consultation with the Opposition Leader, the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Assembly.

So what? It's the Government of the day that has voted to accept such recommendations. If indeed the aim is to attract a better calibre of MP who wouldn't otherwise be up for the job, shouldn't the rise apply once they've signed on? In accepting their roles, our current MPs clearly understood the rate of pay.

I've heard several arguments on why such a rise is necessary:

To lure our "brightest and best" out of the private sector

Because Bermuda has a wealthy economy, our politicians should be paid accordingly

To encourage full-time politicians

Because Bermuda's MPs are underpaid as compared with those in other jurisdictions

If everyone had that view, there'd be no PALS, no Red Cross, no Salvation Army.

But, presumably like politicians, charity workers take on their jobs because they feel they can be of benefit to the community. And what would happen were our economy to take a sudden nosedive? Would we ? the now struggling ? taxpayers still be forced to cough up the cash?

Part of the problem is that the role of the politician is greatly misunderstood in Bermuda. There would be no need for full-time politicians if civil servants were allowed to do the jobs they were hired to do. Contrary to current practice, Cabinet Ministers are not meant to serve as the CEO of their individual departments. Their charge is to set policy. Civil servants are tasked with daily affairs.

I find it interesting that the Premier, in putting forward the case for a salary review, cited politicians' salaries in Jamaica, Canada and the United States as a means of illustrating how underpaid parliamentarians are here. A random Internet search of British counties revealed that Devon, which lies in the south west of England, recently conducted a review similar to ours.

The Devon County Council reached the following conclusion on completion of its independent study: "The days when councillors attended meetings once or twice a week for a couple of hours are long gone. For many councillors, representing their constituencies and being responsible of the council's decision-making is now a full-time job.

"Research carried out in Devon by the independent panel showed that the average backbench County Councillor spends 28 hours a week on council business, that increases to an average 50 hours a week for executive councillors and in some cases is as high as 75 hours a week."

According to a 2001 Census, Devon has a population of 704,493. More than eleven times the size of Bermuda yet its councillors receive a mere pittance of an allowance ? ?10,000 or approximately $18,500.

Councillors are required to "pay tax and National Insurance on their allowance. They also have to meet all their constituency expenses ? telephone calls, postage, surgery costs, travel costs within their constituencies ? from their basic allowance". Think of the savings were that implemented here.

Bermuda's fate will be determined by our 11 Senate members next week, two of whom ? Housing and Works & Engineering Minister David Burch and Attorney General Larry Mussenden ? stand to benefit hugely should such legislation pass, despite never having been elected.