Just as the UK had their own scandal, where MPs were investigated for what they were reclaiming in expenses, a report in the US has revealed waste on a grand scale: $16 million spent on muffins and cookies.

The purchases were made pre-2009 and since then, apparently, measures have been put into place, but can one ever explain how one department, the US Justice Department, can justify spending such massive amounts of money on sweet foods?

The report said that purchasing $16 muffins, $10 cookies and $8 coffees was "extravagant and wasteful", with Senator Chuck Grassley quipping that such spending gave real rise to cynicism by the general public towards the government. On its part, the Justice Department accepted the findings of the reports and vowed such purchases would not continue.

The UK had dealt with its MPs even more harshly. Some were actually jailed. But with record deficits and economic woes, who could ever excuse MPs for paying for a tin opener and reclaiming the expense. Others were just downright swindlers.

And this is where governments the world over must change their ways. In the democratic system as it has evolved today, there is no room for luxury if the general public is being asked to tighten their belt. One cannot give mixed signals. People will never accept increased taxes, a higher workload and higher bills, only to then watch their money go down the drain.

We have had such instances in Malta. The dockyard was one of them, and that has finally been taken off the nation’s shoulders. Whatever anyone says - it was a massive burden.

But the way in which the honoraria issue was handled reflects this same issue, and that is why the Maltese people were so angry. The principle is the same: people were being asked to work harder and pay out a lot more. In the meantime, politicians got a rise. And the less that is said about the way it was implemented, the better. But what is actually key to the argument is that on top of all this, the people felt short changed, that MPs were not value for money, especially when some of them hardly ever turn up for a parliamentary sitting.

The world is in economic strife and turmoil. One hopes the worm will turn and it will eventually get sorted out. But until then, while we are being asked to make sacrifices, then those leading us should also make sacrifices and lead by example. More than anything, they need to ensure that not a penny is wasted.