News Archive
Politicians and power
What a fantastic time Zoë and I had when we went to London at half term. There’s no doubt that our country has one of the great capital cities of the world, certainly in terms of history, probably the greatest. The highlight of our mini-trip, following an invitation we received from Nick Brown, our local MP, was to visit the House of Commons.
So, duly attired in best bib and tucker, we presented ourselves outside Westminster Hall, no mean feat in itself considering the levels of security now in place. There we met Iwan, a member of Nick’s Westminster team, who showed us round the corridors of power, walking through the great hall, along the corridor that Black Rod travels when he bangs on the commons door at the state opening, towards the House of Lords. You can smell two things here: history and power. The history is all around you; pictures and busts of monarchs and politicians that shaped the course of empire and nation. Household names from the political sphere were wandering around; Zoe commented on how she thinks Hazel Blears is smaller than she is!!
And so to PMQs. We had top seats in the actual chamber, just by the side of the Liberal benches, and the jousting between Cameron and Brown was top theatre, with questions that had clearly been agonised over to elicit maximum damage. The debate was about the Territorial Army but the issue was definitely secondary to scoring points in the run up to the next election. And there’s no doubt, the vibe in the house is that the Conservatives are feeling confident. For what it’s worth, I thought Gordon – as they all call him – did well, but you sense that Cameron will have to shoot himself in the foot if he’s not to be moving into number 10.
Finally, a splendid luncheon, in a magnificent dining hall, fantastic food and wine, and sparkling conversation about climate change, education, our church, and…expenses. Talking of which, I wonder whether details of our lunch tab will show up in a few months time in the Daily Telegraph?
Later, as we wandered along Whitehall in the mid-afternoon sunshine, I was thinking about political power. I can think of a number of occasions since the war when the favourite has lost the election. Could it be that the future of nations, like the results of elections, isn’t ultimately in the hands of politicians but in a much safer pair of hands that reside in heaven rather than earth?