Who's your Daddy? 8th February 2008

Nepotism sounds cool. I am not referring to the definition of the word, just its sound. The word is similar in its make-up to 'Neptune' and stirs up images of a bearded Oceanic God complete with a massive trident.
'Nepotism' - It could be a ship in the starfleet.But, in reality, nepotism is neither as worthy nor as cool a word as 'enterprise' or 'voyager'.There is a reason why 'Starship Nepotism' couldn't work. If Captain Kirk or Captain Picard chose their Number 2 solely on the grounds of him/her being a relation - rather than being the best person for the job - there would be mutiny in the ranks. Other members of the crew would begin to feel isolated and it wouldn't be long until the sniping and back-stabbing started. The last thing you want on board a starship is an angry Mr Warf who feels he has been hard done by.Revelations that Conservative MP Derek Conway gave his sons Freddie and Henry jobs as researchers, and paid them £80,000 of tax payers' money, has sparked calls for complete transparency among our own MLAs. Conway was suspended from the House of Commons and thrown out of his parliamentary party.His son Henry, 25, earned £32,717.32 as his father's research assistant from 2001 to 2004. Henry's little brother Freddie, 22, earned just over £50,000 in the same role between 2004 and 2008. During that period, Freddie was doing a degree in Geography at Newcastle University. Little evidence exists of either Conway son doing any work whatsoever during their time of employment.I fully support parents giving their kids a sub as and when required - God knows I've benefitted myself on more than one occasion - but not if the money comes directly from my own wage packet.Sinn Fein MLA Raymond McCartney said: "The Conway case in England has highlighted the issue of politicians employing family members."Clearly, where politicians employ family members there will be public concern. Any suspicion of nepotism only serves to undermine public confidence and destroy trust. People should only be employed by politicians on the basis of merit."There is no place in politics for nepotism," he concluded.Focus has now fallen on political parties over here and some have issued lists containing names of those MLAs who employ relatives.Initially, the DUP wouldn't list any details of family members receiving wages. Instead, they stuck to a statement issued last Friday which said that they have to respect the confidentiality of their 100 plus staff in more than 40 offices.Some cynics suggested the DUP's reluctance to play ball was a sign that its members had something to hide.The DUP's decision to keep quiet, however, didn't last long.On Wednesday evening, Ian Paisley Junior confirmed he receives a salary from Westminster as a researcher for his daddy. It is one of three jobs that he has.Sir Alastair Graham, the former chair of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, described this as "very bizarre". He said: "It means he is being paid as an Assembly member, a junior minister and also by his father from his parliamentary allowances."Ian Jr's sister, Rhonda, could be forgiven for feeling a little hard done by. Up until 2004, she worked as her daddy's assistant while he was a member of the European Parliament. When he stood down, Rhonda was without a job and put herself forward for a position within the DUP. In 2005, she launched a legal action alleging gender discrimination against the DUP, after she failed in her application for a post in the policy and communications unit in the DUP.In an out of court settlment, the party accepted its recruitment procedures were deficient and apologised for any distress caused. In that particular case it would be almost imposs
ible to aim a charge of nepotism at big Ian if he wouldn't wangle his daughter a job.Employees should be employed on the basis of merit - a case of 'what you know' and not 'who your mammy's brother is'. If a family member is the best candidate for a role then, by all means, give it to them.It would be just as wrong to discriminate against someone because of their genes as it would be to hire them for the same reason.Local representatives have also come forward and made public their record on employing family members. Some of the relatives of our elected MLAs work as researchers, others as admin assistants and one prominent nationalist has even hired his wife as a part-time driverThe men of Derry will be freaking out in case that particular habit catches on - they'd be out a fortune if they had to fork out hard cash to the missus every time a lift home from the pub was needed.