Forming a party wouldn’t make independents less independent. It would strengthen a centrist bloc |
There are two questions I am asked most days.
The first, “Are you going to run again?”, is often followed by “Please run again!”
And the second, “When are the independents going to form a party?”, is often followed by “Please form a party!”
Neither question has an easy answer, although the first may be clearer cut than the second.
Speaking at a writers’ festival recently, I took a straw poll among the audience on the issue.
I asked several hundred people in the room to raise their hands if they like the work of the independents in the parliament. About 80% did so. I then asked if they would like the independents to have more influence. A similar number raised their hands. Finally, I asked who thought the independents should form a party. Less than half a dozen agreed.
Those in the room could see the value in what the independents do and want them to expand their impact, but they don’t want them to lose their independence.
In the fluid political environment of today, the temptation, and arguably the need, to fill a gap in the landscape informed by genuine listening to and engagement with communities filled with disappointment and rage is obvious.
The delicate question for the independents is whether doing so within a party structure will fracture the community independents movement.
It’s a conundrum. But perhaps the best approach is to have an open mind.
In the past few years,........