Corporate greed

More evidence of corporate greed this morning in the latest IDS survey of top bosses pay.

The report shows basic pay for FTSE 100 chief executives rose by 3.6 per cent in the year to June. But that was topped up with bonuses, share awards and performance-related payments. Blue-chip bosses enjoyed average bonuses of more than £700,000, up 34 per cent on the previous year, bringing the average total remuneration package to £4.9million. They already earn more than 200 times the average wage.

These are the very same people who write letters to the press urging cuts in public spending and the consequential pay freezes and increases in pension contributions for the low paid. The one thing these bosses do really well is hypocrisy!

I am often asked in media interviews what our members reaction is to likely pay freezes next year. Our members recognise that money will be very tight but they get really angry when the bankers who got us into this mess are preparing to pay themselves bonuses of up to £7bn. That's twice the likely cut in total public expenditure in Scotland over the next four years.

With fair taxation and clamping down on tax avoidance we could more than wipe out the deficit.

All in this together? I think not!