Parliament Should be a Gentleman's Club.

Wednesday, 20th May 2009

Apparently the Prime Minister believes that parliament “cannot operate like some gentleman’s club where the members make up the rules and operate them among themselves”. But if so then that's only because there ain't sufficient gentlemen (and ladies) at Westminster. Parliament should be capable of operating like any decent, self-respecting gentlemen's club. That it isn't is why we're in this situation in the first place.

And now, in the crazy rush to react to public anger, the Commons seems certain to push thrugh reforms that make little sense and, most probably, won't address some of the major issues anyway. Certainly, the idea of some external "regulator" is a terrible one. The Prime Minister has surely heard of "regulatory capture"? Why would this not, eventually, happen with parliament too.

In any case, we already have a kind of regulator: it's called the electorate. There shouldn't be any need for any other body.

Filed under: Brown (180 more articles) , Westminster (186 more articles)

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cuffleyburgers

May 20th, 2009 12:16pm Report this comment

Good points, well made.

We require a rethink of what government is for. Is it for enriching a (substantial) minority of former student union bores, trampling over the freedoms of everybody whilst picking their pockets trying to show "something is being done" about whatever issue has hit the headlines this morning? or is it a group of genuinely capable, fair-minded people running and administering the basic functions of the state so that the citizens thereof can get on with their lives, knowing that property rights and other common laws will be enforced, the integrity of the borders maintained, the rubbish will be collected...

The present government has failed in all these areas, in particular the punitive and frequently retrospective tax impositions are in breach of the first.

Hereford

May 20th, 2009 12:42pm Report this comment

Another point of course is that the rules of TUPE would ensure that the very people who have presided over the lamentable control of expenses would be transferred across from the Fees Office to whatever body is created. So the very same people would likely be scrutinising MP's claims as have done since the Fees Office was created.

The real answer is to provide for a Recall vote which could be used to sack an MP where a significant enough number of constituents considered him or her to have done a bad job.

Ian C

May 20th, 2009 12:55pm Report this comment

Well put Alex and by cuffleyburgers.

Please God, do not allow GB to have any say in the future of Parliament - or anything else for that matter.

Denis Cooper

May 20th, 2009 2:21pm Report this comment

Agreed.

Also ... if Brown doesn't think much of "Gentleman's Clubs", not being a gentleman himself, what does he think about "Working Men's Clubs"?

Even though he's not a working man either ...

Didn't they regulate themselves, before the Labour party decided to kill them off?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/death-of-the-working-mens-club-889632.html

Tim Howard

May 20th, 2009 3:16pm Report this comment

Yes - quite right. It would be good if none of the MPs were barred from recandidature, so that the electorate can really pass judgement. It is on such occasions that the merits of direct election - as opposed to proportionate - become clear. I suspect that the "gentelman's club" suitability will play a large part in the next election.

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