The increase in Members' salaries was approved by an overwhelming
majority which was scarcely an accurate reflection of the general feeling on the subject. It is safe to say that very few M.P.s felt entirely happy at the prospect of voting themselves a 50 per cent. increase out of public funds. Nevertheless the arguments in favour were over- whelming, for cases of very real hardship exist today. Undoubtedly the best speech of the day came from Mr. Buchanan. He explained to a thoroughly sym- pathetic House how since 1922 he had lived on his £400 a year and had rejected every opportunity to supplement his income by lecturing or writing for the Press. He had even managed to put by some small savings. But such an achieve- ment was only possible because he had no children and because neither he nor his wife had ever had a day's illness during the whole of his Parliamentary life. He had not been able to afford a holiday for fifteen years.
Previous page
