I have just returned from a short holiday. The great benefit of a holiday is the time to relax and recharge. Time away from emails, texts, WhatsApp, Messenger, Facebook, and the many other ways I keep in touch with both political developments as well as residents. The other benefit is the perspective a rest can bring. By pulling back you can sometimes see patterns and themes less obvious when embroiled in the turmoil of day-to-day life.
Out of the country and with intermittent internet access I still managed to see the news last week that that our Prime Minister was issued with a Fixed Penalty notice for attending a party in Downing Street during lockdown. News that Boris Johnson had become, in the words of The Sunday Times, “the first British Prime Minister to be penalised in office for breaking the law”. But faced with long bus and train journeys I had time to reflect, not just on the predicament of our Prime Minister but also on the state of our democracy. My conclusion; Boris isn’t the cause of the current crisis, he’s a symptom of a much deeper problem.
Although I always try to be as non-political as possible, always seeking to identify where I agree with others from different political parties and perspectives, I have always been very clear on my view of Boris Johnson. Put simply he is not fit to be our Prime Minister. There are many good Conservative MP’s who would do a good job of being a Conservative Prime Minister, sadly for us all Boris Johnson is not one of them. Developments last week showed clearly that he lied. He is a liar. This is not surprising to those of us who have followed his career for many years. Not only was he was sacked from one of his first jobs at The Times for making up quotes, but he was also sacked by former leader of the Conservative Party Michael Howard for lying. He has form. A polite way of putting it would be to say that he has a tenuous relationship with the truth. There is a growing realisation amongst the public of this reality.
He undoubtedly has some strengths; he is charismatic and engaging, able to communicate with broad swathes of the electorate, and is also a political chameleon, seemingly able to change views and positions with impunity. I can attest to these strengths having attended a small event above a bar in Soho in about 1996/7 where he was the speaker. I remember he turned up late, made an incoherent but funny speech, and then left. The fact I remember him all these years later is testament to his charisma. These traits have enabled him to build a seemingly impossible electoral coalition between former lifelong Labour voters in the north and Conservative voters in the Home Counties. A coalition that looks like it is about to crumble.
The real question though is not whether Boris Johnson is fit to be Prime Minister, it’s not even whether he should resign, the real question is how he became Prime Minister in the first place. This point speaks to a much wider point about our democracy. Is the rise of Boris to Johnson to Prime Minister an indication that our democracy failing? My contention is that it is. Just because someone is good enough to get elected doesn’t mean they’re good enough to govern. We need politicians who can do both.
This is not a party-political point either, the points I seek to make apply equally to the other Westminster Political parties, whether Conservative, Labour, or Liberal Democrat. We need depth of talent in all political parties. My view is that our political system not only fails to provide us with a diverse bunch of talented MP’s but it also fails to ensure that the very best of those MP’s rise to the top to become effective Government Minsters. In the summer of 2020, The Economist magazine made a similar point about talent within the House of Commons, referring to Ministers and former Minsters, including our own MP Dr Fox, under the headline the ‘Dance of the Lemons’. There is a growing awareness that this is a problem.
All of this matters. If we are to succeed and prosper as country, to address the serious challenges we face as a nation, then the best of us need to feel able to enter and prosper in politics. The combination of former journalists, ex special advisors, and political opportunists that seem to comprise so much of the two front benches in the House of Commons does not inspire me with confidence. There are exceptions of course, and I increasingly find that the MP’s whose opinions I respect most often have significant experience outside of politics. They are not career politicians.
Over the past few years our democracy has undoubtedly been under pressure. Brexit was an enormous shock to the system. From the parliamentary shenanigans of John Bercow to the pro-rogueing of Parliament by Boris Johnson, our democratic institutions are creaking. So far, they have withstood the pressure. But we should not be complacent, there are serious grounds for concern.
Whatever happens to Boris Johnson over the coming days and weeks we should remember that he is a symptom of a much deeper problem. He is not the problem itself. If we fail to recognise this and address the root causes of the problem, we will never get the politicians the country needs. As Winston Churchill wrote “those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”, I live in hope that we have that enough of us see the need for change before it’s too late.
Published and promoted by Ashley Cartman for and on behalf of the North Somerset Liberal Democrats, 10 Fenshurst Gardens, Long Ashton, BS41 9AR.