Politics Etc

Never Mind Expenses, What About The Main Job?

GM — Sun, 17 May 2009 21:51:00 +0000

Amidst the plethora of Sunday comment – uniformly damning – about the current state of parliament, Henry Porter in the Observer looks convincingly at the need for wider parliamentary reform, to enable the wretched place to actually do its primary job a little better.

In the current session, Parliament will spend 143 days in recess. MPs took 24 days holiday at Christmas, 10 days in February, 17 at Easter and now they have the prospect of 10 days at Whitsun plus a summer break of 82 days. Not bad for basic pay and allowances of £180,000 a year.

Set against this is the time allowed by the insufferable leader of the house, Harriet Harman, for the debate of yet another criminal justice bill – the Policing and Crime Bill 2008-09. The Lib Dem MP Evan Harris pointed out at the Manifesto Club last week that the bill has been given just six-and-a-half hours for debate. During that time, MPs will be expected to scrutinise measures that will create a new offence of paying for sex, modify the law on soliciting, tighten regulations on lap-dancing clubs, introduce powers to allow police to deal with young people drinking in public, introduce new codes for the sale of alcohol, amend criminal asset recovery schemes and change airport security and policing laws.

All of which essentially means, says Porter, that ministers like Harman hate scrutiny, and parliament is too inadequate in trying to provide any.

The Circus Rolls On

GM — Thu, 14 May 2009 17:26:00 +0000

I am starting to wonder how long this story can keep running. The Telegraph are certainly squeezing every last penny from the presumably rather costly information they have bought about MPs’ expenses. And they’ve now secured a couple of scalps – nicely balanced too, with one Labour (Elliot Morley suspended by Brown) and one Conservative, Andrew MacKay (told to resign as an aide by Cameron). MacKay may have further problems, though, as grassroots Tory members overwhelmingly voted in an online Conservative Home poll for his de-selection as an MP. It would not be surprising if some of the worst offenders didn’t face a backlash in their constituencies, either from their own grassroots members desperate to de-select the albatross now occupying their seat, or later from the voters who will choose to vote for an opponent to register their disgust. That’s if they all remember this a year from now, mind you.

The cheque-book waving isn’t necessarily a good thing either, as the Economist’s Bagehot also observes. I don’t know many people who could readily stump up six or seven thousand pounds, never mind the thirteen thousand being merrily waved by Hazel Blears yesterday. Does rather add to the impression that public service has given quite a few MPs quite a lot of disposable income!

But, to cut to the quick, we’ve surely done about as much hand-wringing as we can, with Parliament apparently becoming a much grimmer, depressing place at present. Jeremy Paxman interviewed some would-be MPs on Newsnight last night, and couldn’t quite remove from his face the look of cynical bemusement that they still want to go into politics. For all their attempted freshness, of course, they are all political hacks who have been at the political game in a voluntary capacity for years, whatever they will trumpet now about being new brooms. Paxman rather neatly trumped the Labour candidate by comparing her high-blown words about a change, a new morality etc. with an almost identical set uttered by, er, Hazel Blears when she was elected for the first time.

The time has come now, I think, for a bit of a rest from the hysteria – which the media are going to struggle to sustain, for all their expertise at this – and some reflection about how we might best alter the body politic such that it does not produce this sort of endemic amorality and lack of judgement. We as electors cannot, after all, take much pleasure from the sight of such a demeaned collection of representatives, whose judgement and legislative capacity we still need. Let the media beasts take a rest, and allow parliament and democracy to resume their fractious relationship over the course of the next year. Oh, and please let the Speaker go. Now.

Meanwhile, in other news, Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma’s long-suffering opposition leader, is once again in police custody as the ferocious generals look to presumably extend her house arrest. There indeed is a story of grit and heroism in the face of one of the most morally decrepit regimes in the world.

Public Pressure or Media Witch Hunt?

GM — Wed, 13 May 2009 12:07:00 +0000

David Cameron certainly appeared to have stolen a march on Gordon Brown yesterday. With his firm grasp of what is now expected, and a very public instruction to his shadow cabinet to pay back their most glaring expense abuses, Cameron looked and sounded like a prime minister. The actual PM was left playing catch-up, with a series of tortured interviews at the end of the day which were then challenged by political correspondents (Brown announced all party agreement on a solution which is still under discussion on the relevant Commons committee). When Nick Robinson kept pressing him about whether he was not in fact merely apeing the Tory leader’s ideas, Brown became increasingly frustrated, and was unable to make a response that didn’t simply sound petulant.

Nevertheless, as the saga continues, and MPs now start to fall over themselves to pay back ever spiralling sums of ill-gotten expenses, the question could justly arise as to how far this is a good, democratic response to the power of the people, and how far it is a supine reaction to a media conducted witch-hunt. There are signs that some MPs are starting to fight back. The Liberals’ Andrew George has described the ‘Telegraph’ story of his expenses as a mendacious and vindictive fabrication, and other targeted MPs have similarly started to point out the errors in some of the reporting. For the most part, though, the expenses speak for themselves, and the glory of a democracy is that each MP will need to make restitution. Nowhere is this clearer than in the junior minister Phil Hope’s decision to pay back some £41,000, on the grounds that he cannot bear the perception people now have of him.

As the furore over individual expenses dies down, there are definitely some interesting thoughts to be aired about the health of our democratic system, and the nature of our representative institution and those who sit in it. No matter how painful to MPs themselves, that can only be a positive development.

Meanwhile, the video below strings three of the more memorable news items of the last couple of days together, beginning with Stephen Fry’s apparent defence of MPs and attack on journalists. He later commented that he wished he’d kept his mouth shut – make up your own mind!

Tebbit Thuggery

GM — Tue, 12 May 2009 07:42:00 +0000

Norman Tebbit was known as the Chingford Skinhead back in the days of his Tory prominence, as a result of his rather knee-jerk form of political engagement. He was back at it today, in an interview on the BBC ‘Today’ programme, where he was virtually urging voters to consider other parties than the Tories. Nick Robinson, commenting on this, said that Tebbit was almost going so far as to tell voters to vote UKIP. Robinson gave a very prescient commentary on the expenses scandal, worth listening to here – his comment is towards the end of the 10 minute segment.

Meanwhile, today’s Telegraph revelations do rather reinforce the old class distinctions of Tory and Labour. Where their Labour colleagues claim for bath plugs and carrier bags, the Tories are busy claiming for their horse manure and moat cleaning. But it’s the Speaker who’s under fire today, as Tory MP Douglas Carswell continues to gather support for his motion of No Confidence. Without support from party leaders – who may prefer to avoid a damaging battle over the Speakership – Carswell may be unlikely to gain sufficient support to actually oust Mr. Martin, but his point has been made loud and clear, and Martin is damaged goods (again – listen to Robinson’s comment about how Martin sees his duties). Whatever happens, Parliament in the short term is under scrutiny as never before.

Is the Speaker Now Vulnerable?

GM — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:46:00 +0000

Andrew Rawnsley on Politics Home reports that the view of Westminster insiders suggests Hazel Blears and Barbara Follett face the most serious questioning for their expenses follies. Can’t believe Margaret Moran is not on that list, but that may be because she is simply not important enough. In fact, though, the man towards whom attention is now focusing after a frankly disastrous performance in the Commons today is the ever inarticulate Speaker, Michael Martin. He gave a firm slap down to Labour’s Kate Hoey for daring to suggest that calling the police in to deal with the leak of members’ expenses might be, erm, a waste of time and money?

Hoey was right, and Martin, once you understood his garbled but undeniably angry response, couldn’t have given a clearer indication that he is unsuited to holding the job of umpire of the Commons. His judgement is flawed, he himself is well up on the expenses gravy train, and there is no chance that he is going to be able to lead the Commons towards necessary – and public pacifying – reforms. The Telegraph’s Iain Martin reports that one Tory MP is now casting around for signatures to a motion to depose the Speaker. Incidentally, it is worth remembering that traditionally, the Speaker faces election in his constituency unopposed.

AS Revision Sessions

GM — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:32:00 +0000

There are not that many available times where students are not sitting AS-level exams, but I propose to run the following sessions for those who want them:

Thursday May 14th.: 1.30 – 2.30pm – Democracy and Referendums
Monday May 18th.: 4pm – 5pm – Elections and Electoral Systems, followed by 5pm – 6pm Pressure Groups (but please note that timings for these sessions may slip a little.)

The format will be to review the content, with examples, and then consider sample questions and answers. Given time constraints (1 hour for each session) the aim will be to consider key points and facts to illuminate the topic as a whole, rather than comprehensive coverage.

If there is demand for a session on parties, I will fix a time with students who contact me direct, or leave a note on this blog.

History sessions are posted on the history blog.

Students are of course more than welcome to fix a time to see me with revision essays or other aspects of the course they may wish to go through. Please email or phone.

Revision Classes

GM — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:01:00 +0000

I will publish a timetable of AS revision classes this evening.

Defending Gordon

GM — Mon, 11 May 2009 13:31:00 +0000

Gordon Brown’s sister-in-law has written a revealing article in the Guardian today, putting their side of the PM’s Cleaning Expenses Story. A useful reminder of the often distorted nature of media stories. Not that, in this instance, it excuses a range of other MPs’ abuses which seem rather less justifiable, but I also note that both Michael Gove and Andrew Lansley have provided explanations for their shift in primary residence, both related to family circumstances rather than the desire to make a quick buck. I have, on this blog, been as fulsome as any in criticising a venal and money-grubbing culture at Westminster, but am also happy to accept that there may be proper explanations for some. Which makes it all the more extraordinary that too few ‘honest’ MPs are prepared to admit that too many of their colleagues have demeaned the calling of political public service in the way that they have.

Futile Fox

GM — Mon, 11 May 2009 06:26:00 +0000

I almost thought David Cameron had started to nail the issue of MPs expenses yesterday. He seemed, at any rate, to understand the need for the ‘S’ word. Then, this morning, on BBC Breakfast, his Defence Spokesman, Liam Fox – presumably being wheeled out because his expenses are ok – ruined it all, with a pathetic, rambling performance in which he was no better than the bleating Blears yesterday. The system is what’s wrong. It must be changed. That was Fox’s futile mantra. Has he really no ability to understand how deep this runs? He had a golden opportunity to develop Cameron’s line, and show that he too was made of leadership fibre – and he fell flat on his face.

Contempt and Loathing

GM — Sun, 10 May 2009 14:59:00 +0000

It is possible that we haven’t seen such a wide-scale level of loathing towards the elected members of the House of Commons for several generations. Matthew D’Ancona, in his Telegraph piece, references Lewis Namier’s great work – but he was exposing the hypocrisy and place seeking of George III’s MPs!

There really isn’t anywhere for an MP to turn today. The comments of over 400 people on Nick Robinson’s blog are almost uniformly hostile. The Observer’s Andrew Rawnsley and Nick Cohen are scathing, while the attempted defence of the wretchedly venal Luton MP, Margaret Moran – who must wish her career had remained in deserved obscurity – are published for all to mock on the Times’ blog by Sam Coates. Could we really be witnessing the beginnings of a whole-sale political clear-out? Or will we just all forget this ever happened and return the same amoral, tax-dodging, money-grabbing shirkers to parliament next time?