Our beloved national treasurer, Wayne Swan, was bleating to the media yet again about how our latest demons, CEOs - who appear to have supplanted terrorists, should be cutting their salaries to share the pain with "average Australians".

I couldn't agree more that executive salaries ought to be cut, particularly as their salaries are great examples of the wanton greed that has lead to this current financial crisis. I have a real problem though, with people like our treasurer or any politician for that matter, calling for others to take action while they do nothing.

Wayne Swan calling for executives to cut their salaries is just a cheap political stunt on Swan's behalf until he and the Labor Party show some real leadership and cut parliamentary salaries. Imagine politicians leading by example, it's almost getting what we vote for.

The ineffectual management of this nation by both the Liberal and Labor parties is abhorrent. Their parliamentary salaries should be reduced dramatically and become a performance based arrangement.

You look after your electorate and state/nation by meeting set performance expectations and we'll give you free-loaders extra pay. Provide some leadership parliamentarians, it's theoretically why you're there. It would be great to see it in practice.

Until politicians cut their salaries and introduce performance based pay scales, telling others to cut their salaries just smacks you in the face as the most blatent "pot, meet kettle" political gamesmanship that treats the Australian people as though we're simpletons.

We don't want words, we want leadership and action.