That’s the result of research by the News of the World – summarised in the graphic on the right.
An interesting journalistic exercise but is it of any interest to voters? Should it be of any interest to voters?
Here are some questions you might like to answer:
Given that most shadow cabinet ministers are so wealthy is it time that they stopped pursuing so many outside interests and focused on their frontbench briefs?
Do the nineteen millionaires in the shadow cabinet have the authority to order backbenchers (who ‘only’ have the basic parliamentary remuneration) to vote against higher MPs’ pay?
Will voters be impressed by the ability of these Conservatives to make money? Hammond and Hunt, in particular, are successful entrepreneurs. As Fraser writes: "The News of the World research shows it’s almost all earned rather than inherited because Cameron’s team is mix of people who have been successful in diverse fields." A shadow cabinet of business people (the Conservatives) is more likely to succeed than a Cabinet of political lifers (Labour).
Will voters conclude that Conservatives are not like normal people – insulated from the current economic realities of falling disposable incomes?