SIR – After I shed a tear at Peter Luff’s letter on how the pay of MPs had declined in real terms I stopped to ask ‘how do they live on such a low wage?’ (about 2.5 times the UK average).

Then I remembered that of course they don’t!

Well at least not all of them, there are the ‘expenses’ which allow them to employ their relatives and pay them for going to work, and of course their ‘consultancy fees’ and huge payments from lobby firms.

All in all, very few MPs work full-time for the people who elect them.

Maybe now would be a good time to ask all local MPs to disclose what fees they get from businesses for their influence on decision making and which non approved All Party Committees (social clubs where big businesses provide ‘hospitality’) they are members of.

I am reminded of piece of advice I once recieved when working in the public sector, ‘if you are only in it for the money – get out’.

DAVID PEPPER

Fernhill Heath