One Job or Two?

?? So I’ve been thinking about this second job MP discussion. When I started this networking?group?and the subsequent?Laurel Leaf directory, I was still working as a Personal Trainer, Ante & Post Natal Exercise Specialist & Pilates Instructor (my career for over 25 years).

It became impossible to run two businesses properly and I had to make a choice. Happily, I can (and still) write for fitness magazines or contribute to articles, but that’s not a job in quite the same way. I sit and write, takes me x amount of time and job done.

MPs are paid approx ￡82k a year. A very nice amount – thank you very much but not so much a fortune, although you may say that’s relative! If MPs had stuck to the rules…….. (a) they aren’t allowed to lobby government on behalf of a company they work for and (b) they must record it in the register of financial interests, would we be having this conversation? Some MPs work as Doctors, would we deny them this?

You and I have a right to determine what work we do and what money we earn as long as we declare our taxes. Shouldn’t MPs?

If you believe that being an MP is a full-time job with a never-ending workload (which is more than likely the case) can they serve their constituents in good faith having two jobs? If they earn more in their second job, would that stop them prioritising their MP duties?

Maybe I’m just seeing it from a freelancers point of view, where I don’t have a full-time team behind me, fulfilling admin tasks behind the scenes and MPs more than likely do. If they’ve got a second income, they probably have the funds to pay for all kinds of assistance.

Can we, should we judge how much a person deems reasonable to earn? Or should MPs take the view as the majority of nurses do……that nursing is a vocation, they want to care for people so generally accept they are only ever going to be paid so much…….. I mean nurses don’t become nurses to gain millionaire status! They also probably don’t have the time to take on a second job, do MPs?

David Lammy, Labour MP has a talk show on radio. He presents on there a few hours a week. I don’t know if that’s the only other job he has aside from being an MP but the show is topical, educational as well as interesting. Should we deny him (and us) this?

MPs, should be pillars of our community and if they go on to shatter our trust, perhaps they shouldn’t be allowed to continue as MPs. But should they ruin the choice of a second income for others because of a few bad eggs? Not sure what we would do with ex-Prime Ministers who abuse their lobbying power…….!!

Interested to hear your thoughts on this!