Yep, our glorious leaders are stupid as well as corrupt

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In a recent report on the use of iPads by MPs (see the BBC here), the conclusion was that this had saved "several thousand pounds" because "they could circulate information electronically rather than in hard copy." These are the MPs who already have an allowance of five computers, but are incapable of circulating files electronically

Comments

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Adding in the cost of one new printer and cartridge per MP for that time period still doesn't significantly change the costs - printers just aren't that expensive nor do they need to be replaced often enough to make a dent. Especially since they're still required for those things which can't be electronic. The total staff required also hasn't changed, since you will need secretaries, postal staff and the like regardless on a per person basis rather than a per-unit-moved basis. The disposal of confidential materials might be a factor, but again the gross overheads are maintained. The figures given are for money saved, so even if you halve the figures you still end up with a net result that either the wastage of paper is astronomical or that email and other electronic systems simply are not used unless attached to a shiny toy or both.

As for travel, two of the five machines with which they are issued are laptops. If they're issued with laptops with terrible power performance, that's a black mark against their procurement but they're still portable work computers.