31 August 2005

Will it ever stop?

You would have thought that someone in the SPCB might have suggested that now was not the time for MSPs to indulge themselves... But no, the Evening News reports the latest extravagance (here):
"SCOTTISH Parliament bosses have splashed out thousands of pounds on new red leather armchairs for the MSPs' exclusive restaurant.
They want to create more of a "gentlemen's club atmosphere" in the hope of persuading more Holyrood politicians to use it.
But today the move - part of a £25,000 upgrade agreed by the cross-party Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB)- was branded another example of extravagance by the parliament, guaranteed to fuel public anger.
"Someone should have learned the lesson by now," said one MSP.
A total of 15 chairs and matching sofa, along with eight tables, a rug and four bar stools, have been bought for the bar area of the restaurant at a cost of £15,650.
On top of that, new blinds have been installed at £3850 and new lighting at £2000.
Before the new chairs were ordered, MSPs were given the chance to try out a range of new chairs in different styles, finishes and colours.

Regardless of the merits of this decision to invest over £20,000, do these guys have no sense of how this might appear to the public?

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