10 grand well spent

John Redwood writes that the government is spending an average of £10,000 per year per person. He claims that for all this, he just gets his dustbin emptied once a week, and is allowed to use some inadequate roads.

There are any number of ways in which this is a sign of a man out of touch with reality. It would be easy enough to come up with dozens of examples of how he directly benefits from, to pick just a very few examples, the NHS, schools, universities, the police, social services and the welfare state, the armed forces, health and safety inspectors and most other things that the government spends money on.

But there is an even simpler criticism of Redwood's point. Because as well as getting his bin emptied and being able to drive on the roads, there is also the small matter, which seems to have slipped his mind, of his £61,820 salary, and £105,928 for expenses and to run his office.

[The comments that his article attracted are totally beyond parody, including the man who wants to relieve the burden to the taxpayer by charging people if they want to go to parks or recreational areas. But best/worst of all is the man who complains that he paid nearly £100,000 in tax last year. If you are so rich that your tax bill is that high, surely you should have better and more enjoyable ways to spend your time than whinging on the internet about life's injustices?]