Why voters are losing faith in the people who govern them |
Guy Stenhouse says moral failures, not policy mistakes, are driving voters’ growing disillusionment with those in power.
Just what is wrong with so many people in public life today?
I'm sure most, probably a good majority, are decent citizens trying to do the right thing for the people they serve but there are many - all too many - who have been found wanting.
Across the Atlantic the President of the United States lies and bullies as well as uses his office to enrich himself and those around him. Ronald Reagan would turn in his grave. Have American voters taken leave of their senses? Is integrity in public life no longer something which should be valued? Has decency gone forever?
Looking at what has happened in America carries the danger that we feel smug about how much better things are in the UK but the corrosion has spread here too.
Suppose somebody you hardly know, probably from another country, invites you to join him on his yacht or private island. What do you do? The bleedingly obvious answer is you don’t go. You may not see the strings or cameras which will be attached but unless you are a complete fool you know they will be there. Just say No.
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Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (note: always be suspicious of people with made up double-barrelled names). A man who one would think has been brought up well, instilled with a sense of duty and alert to the fact that there are many people who would like to exploit a connection with him.
We do not yet know whether he has done anything illegal but we do know he has behaved badly and he should have seen the danger coming.
The last Conservative Government, in office a long time and in the eyes of voters clearly tired, out of ideas, distracted by factional infighting, out for themselves rather than the nation. Time for change and renewal.
In come Starmer and Co. A broom promising to sweep anew and, above all, to sweep cleanly. An overwhelming electoral mandate given to them to do the right thing.
How remarkably quickly it has all fallen apart. In terms of action there has been a complete failure to tackle the sort of overspending - benefits, public pensions, the NHS - which actually only a Labour Government can address and take the country with them.
The country needs growth, our public services need reform (with a small "r") but all that the Labour Government has done demonstrates a lack of courage to make the difficult but necessary changes while they still had a chance. That chance has now gone and will need a change of Government for it to come round again.
More than the policy failures it is the moral failures which have made the public feel sick so quickly.
If you are a Government Minister or Prime Minister surely you can buy your own glasses or suits. What exactly is wrong with a suit from M&S? Just buy from there like everyone else does. If some Labour supporting businessperson says he will buy expensive designer items for you just say No.
Likewise if some big corporation offers to fly you out to the World Cup Final - can you really not see the danger? Just say No.
Angela Rayner is not fit for high office but heaven forbid if Starmer falls she is what we might get. First we had the tax advantageous claim that the house she owned, but which she and her husband didn't actually live in, was her main home. Not illegal but convenient. Then we had, while she was deputy Prime Minister, convenient carelessness about the correct calculation of the stamp duty she owed. Should she ever be Prime Minister? No, her judgement is flawed and the standards she holds herself to are too low.
Let's not even dig too deeply into Peter Mandelson. He is rather clever so there is no excuse for his appalling lack of judgement. What was it that made him think he could do what he did? Entitlement? The rules apply to you but not to me?
Unfortunately, I fear we will see his like again.
Some rules need to be tightened. Vetting needs to be more vigorous. Sadly these alone won't do it. Margaret Thatcher or Tony Benn would never have fallen into these traps. We need people like them back in politics. We should care less about policies and more about integrity when we cast our vote. We, the electorate, get what we deserve and should be more choosy.
Guy Stenhouse is a notable figure in the Scottish financial sector. He has held various positions, including being the Managing Director of Noble Grossart, an independent merchant bank based in Edinburgh, until 2017