No Sinn Fein members at Westminster
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One part of Supalak Ganjanakhundee's thoughtful commentary on the issue of Myanmar's parliamentary oath (Burning Issue, April 25) might give the erroneous impression that Sinn Fein members from Northern Ireland have now taken up their seats in the House o
Supalak wrote that, in 2010, Sinn Fein MPs who refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Queen were allowed to come up with their own version before taking their seats in parliament.
To date, they have not done so, and any alternative wording would be subject to the approval of the Speaker of the House at the least.
As has often been pointed out, this does not prevent the same MPs from claiming expenses (other than salaries) and taking advantage of Commons facilities.
Sinn Fein members do participate in the Northern Ireland Assembly in Belfast, where they are the second biggest party and no oath is required.
Chris Jeffery
Bangkok
