FINAL SCOPE
Former UK civil servant Andrew McDonald has died aged 59 due to complications of cancer and Parkinsons disease. McDonald was given what might be called the shortest straw in governing history, when he was made chair of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Committee in 2009. As the man who had to clean up the expenses scandal, and make MPs agree to the new transparency rules, he was as popular in the Commons as Boris Johnson visiting a hospital. He also found that the newspapers, who had called for reform, refused to support him because they wanted to be the ones in charge.
Despite this, McDonald managed to change the rules on MP expenses and earnings to make it more transparent, although his suggestion that expense allowances should be cut but that MP pay should rise to cover the job was rejected by then Prime Minister David Cameron. Yes, Cameron had a hand in the recent 2nd jobs scandal. He really did have no start to his talents. Unlike Andrew McDonald, who achieved all of these reforms of government despite suffering from prostate cancer and Parkinsons at the same time. The former led to his retirement, the latter he remained a campaigner for until the very end. Before IPSA he was instrumental in pushing Freedom of Information. After retirement, he remained a passionate cricket fan. He was picked by three teams: Fat Kids Always Win at Seesaw, The Whipping Posts and the House of Extravaganza. A B Team special then.
Andrew McDonald
27 June 1962 – 28 October 2021
3 teams