Why politics is biased
ConservativeHome has published a list of pointers by people who have become MPs or climbed the greasy pole. The section titled ‘It’s not what you know but who you know‘ is enlightening… and rather obvious. And apparently the average cost of becoming a Tory MP was over £40,000. Oh and don’t forget to kiss ass all the way up.
And yet people are still claiming that politics is a meritocractic business? Is it any wonder women and working class people are excluded from this exclusive tribe?
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Filed in: Party politics
And black and Asian people…
Leon,
No, it’s no wonder. But what’s the answer?
I think the answer is to struggle for real democracy. That does not mean trying to prise open the doors of that exclusive tribe, and get a few women and ethnic minorities to become members.
Part (or rather, a lot) of the problem is the process by which the large parties filter out who’s likely to get elected. Of course, it is possible to become an MP without the approval of the large parties, but it’s very rare.
So, how to fix that? My prefered solution would be STV, with top-ups to ensure proportionality.
Sunny - better not show this stuff to Avi Cohen, or he’ll be off on his idealistic hobby horse again…
The answer is, of course, liberalism and a minimal state. Make politicians irrelevant.