As far as I know, the job of president of the US pays ~$150k/year.

I think representatives in the house and senate don't earn that much either. These jobs are typically held by people who are already rich.

Interestingly in the UK members of parliament were unpaid.

Because of this only members of the landed gentry went into politics.

There was only one party and it was called the “Wig” party. This is the origins of the conservatives today.

Unions started funding left wing members, but this became unsustainable and so parliament voted for salaries to be paid allowing working class politicians to enter politics.

They can have a stipend. But the budget they manage should be $0/year.

With regard to *elected* politicians, I tend to think the opposite. Their salary ought to be high enough to make selling their power for much, much more than their salary less enticing. Also, to the the extent elected politicians are necessary, I want to attract the best of the best - and afford them the luxury not to have to worry about how much more they could be making with another job. The problem isn't high salaries; it's the perverse incentives associated with trying to get re-elected over and over (i.e. pleasing large donors while they're in office). Just limit every elected position to one term. Period.