Dear Sir,

Your headline in today’s paper (Wednesday, November 20, 2024) hit me like a sledgehammer. I guess the government money tree is bigger than a Californian sequoia.

When there is a $3.5 billion deficit, I do not comprehend the gall Members of Parliament have to even consider the proposal of an 18.8 per cent increase in their salaries, especially when the pension increase this year for seniors — who incidentally have worked and paid into their pensions for a lifetime — is only 2.4 per cent.

When you consider, as you rightly pointed out, that many MPs have jobs in the private sector, getting six-figure salaries, maybe the time has arrived when they are not allowed to have second jobs.

In the past four years, we have not had a visit from representatives of any political party or independents. As bad as the old United Bermuda Party had been painted, we had at least two visits a year from our representative.

In the past 56 years, I have had three visits from prospective Progressive Labour Party MPs!

Nowadays, the only time you see the MPs are when they attend photo shoots such as at the recent Fairmont Southampton ground-breaking and they appear on TV or in the newspaper.

This present batch has never had it so good, with trips to COP28 (Dubai, United Arab Emirates) and COP29 (Baku, Azerbaijan), dashing here and there getting their trips plus living allowance, which if they were at home they would have to pay for themselves.

There is talk of joining Caricom; however, before this takes place, there should be a referendum on the matter. Would there be freedom of movement between member countries? This is digressing, but decisions are being made with which the electorate do not agree.

The electorate must demand more responsible government from their representatives.

ANTONY SIESE

Paget