Labour and inherited privilege (4)

I don't particularly like quoting from the Daily Hatemail, but here goes:

Lord Kinnock was appointed as a European Commissioner in 1995, on a salary of £105,584 a year. By the time he stepped down in 2004, he was earning £163,453 in salary, a £24,000-a-year housekeeping allowance and a £7,000 entertainment budget. Mr Kinnock received almost £273,000 when he left the job to help him adjust to life outside the Commission. He can also draw on a £64,000-a-year pension...

Mrs Kinnock, 64, and her husband have earned a reputation as serial junketeers after jumping on the EU gravy train in the 1990s. During her 15 years as Labour's MEP for South Wales East, Mrs Kinnock's salary had risen from £31,686 to £63,291, plus substantial expenses. Yet a surprise call from Number 10 means she will make the transition from £63,291-a-year euro MP to £83,275-a-year Europe Minister...

Their son, Stephen Kinnock, headed the St Petersburg office of the publicly funded British Council until October. Its unpaid chairman is Lord Kinnock. The 39-year-old now works as a director of the World Economic Forum.

The Kinnocks’ daughter, 37-year-old Rachel, landed a job on Mr Brown’s political staff two years ago.

New Labour and inherited privilege (3)

Another instalment of my occasional series from The Metro:

Mr Martin is said to be keen to stay on for an another year so he can keep his £141,000 salary and to maximise his chances of passing on his safe Glasgow seat to his son, Paul.

His son would presumably be known as 'Gorbals Paul' ab initio, which makes it a crying shame he wasn't christened 'Josef'.

Lord Mandelson, Prince Of Darkness

Labour and inherited privilege (2)

Continuing my occasional series, it transpires that Siobhain McDonagh MP, the Whip who was sacked for suggesting that The Goblin King might seriously consider f***ing off, is the sister of Baroness McDonagh, who was the Labour party's General Secretary under Tony Bliar.

Even by Nulab standards, Ms McDonut has an impressive CV:

She was a clerical officer for the DHSS between 1981-3, then a Housing benefit (sic) from 1983-4, then a receptionist at the Wandsworth Homeless Persons Unit from 1984-6, and a housing adviser from 1986-8. Prior to being elected to Parliament she worked as a Development Manager for Battersea Churches Housing Trust from 1988-97.

Gwyneth Dunwoody 1930 - 2008

A lot of tributes are being paid over at LabourHome. Apparently, "She was born into the Party as daughter of the longtime General Secretary, Morgan Phillips ..."

For a political party that is supposed to be in favour of meritocracy and against hereditary privilege and/or nepotism, it is quite amazing how many Labour politicians rest on their ancestors' laurels - Peter Mandelson (Herbert Morrison), Hilary Benn (Tony Benn), Emily Benn (Hilary Benn), the Miliband bros - or are indeed married to each other - Ed Balls & Yvette Cooper, Harriet Harman & Jack Dromey.

Those are the examples that immediately spring to mind, I am sure that there are others.