Why are they called 'Labour' when none of them have worked?

It’s not often I return to blog subjects I’ve written about before but this one particularly gauls me !

I was sat watching BBC Question Time last week, on the panel was Labour MP Tristram Hunt, he strikes me as one of the most unpleasant champagne socialists around. He’s so obviously ‘posh’, he went to an exclusive private school in London and then Cambridge University, indeed his father was Baron Hunt of Chesterton. I don’t suppose there’s been many Labour MPs in its history called Tristram either. Labour is supposed to be the party of the working class, so I thought, what on earth is he doing as a member of its shadow cabinet?

I then began to wonder how many more like him there are in the shadow cabinet of a party that purports to represent us, the working class. How many had been to private school, university, Oxbridge? How many had actually done a proper days work rather than just left Uni’ and gone straight into politics via the researcher route? So I did a bit of digging. The results should be surprising – but they’re not !

Headed by Ed Milliband, the Shadow Cabinet consists of 27 Labour MPs. Here’s what I found about each of them :-

Ed Milliband     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – ½ 

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University
Experience - In 1992 he worked for a few months as a researcher for Channel 4 before being employed as a researcher by Harriet Harman.
Elected to Parliament in 1995

Harriet Harman     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 4

Educated at Private School then York University

Experience - Legal officer for the National Council for Civil Liberties for 4 years from 1978.

Elected to Parliament in 1982 

Ed Balls     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 5

Educated at Private School then Oxford University

Experience - 1 year as a teaching fellow in the Department of Economics, Harvard University then 4 years as lead economic writer at the Financial Times. In 1994 he became an advisor to Gordon Brown.

Elected to Parliament in 2005

Douglas Alexander     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – ½ 

Educated at Comprehensive School then Edinburgh University

Experience - Researcher for Gordon Brown in 1990 before returning for a second stint at university. He then worked for 6 months as a solicitor before entering politics full time.

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Yvette Cooper     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 2

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University

Experience - Economic policy researcher to John Smith then Bill Clinton, then Harriet Harman. 1995-97, Chief economic correspondent of The Independent.

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Sadiq Khan     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 11

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of North London

Experience - Worked from 1994 - 2005 as a Human Rights Solicitor

Elected to Parliament in 2005

Rosie Winterton     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 4

Educated at Private School then University of Hull

Experience - John Prescott's Constituency PA from 1980 until 1986, then Parliamentary Officers, first for Southwark Council for two years until 1988 and then for a further two for the Royal College of Nursing until 1990. She followed this up with 4 years as Managing Director of Connect Public Affairs then back with Prescott as his advisor for 3 years.

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Andy Burnham     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 0

Educated at Comprehensive School then Cambridge University

Experience - Researcher to Tessa Jowell from 1994 until after the 1997 General Election. In 1998 he became a special advisor to the Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport, Chris Smith, where he remained until his election to parliament

Elected to Parliament in 2001

Chuka Umunna     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 4

Educated at Private School then University of Manchester then Nottingham Law School

Experience - Worked as a Solicitor & political Writer from 2002 – 2006. Became Advisor to Labour’s John Cruddas in 2007, then adopted as Labour Party's prospective parliamentary candidate for Streatham

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Rachel Reeves     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 10

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University then London School of Economics

Experience - Between 2000 and 2006 she was an economist at the Bank of England and British Embassy in Washington. Between 2006 and 2010 she worked for HBOS

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Tristram Hunt     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 5

Educated at Private School then Cambridge University

Experience - Part time historic Writer and broadcaster from 2001-2009 also working for Labour Party at same time

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Vernon Coaker     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 21

Educated at Grammar School then University of Warwick

Experience - Worked as a teacher from 1976 to 1997

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Hilary Benn     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 0

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Sussex

Experience - Career before Parliament Research Officer with a trade union then various roles within Labour Party inc Special Adviser to David Blunkett.

Elected to Parliament in 1995

Caroline Flint     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 10

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of East Anglia

Experience - Worked for the Inner London Education Authority, 1984-87. The National Union of Students from 1988–89 and Lambeth Council 1989 – 1993. She was then the Senior Researcher and Political Officer for the GMB Union before entering Parliament.

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Angela Eagle     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 1

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University

Experience - Worked for the CBI in 1984. Then went to work for COHSE (The Health Workers Union) until she entered Parliament

Elected to Parliament in 1992

Michael Dugher     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 1

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Nottingham

Experience - Straight from University to be a Labour Party Advisor then Head of Policy at AEEU Union.

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Ivan Lewis     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 11

Educated at Private School then Bury College

Experience - Worked in the voluntary sector from 1986 to 1997 for Outreach

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Mary Creagh     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 10

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University

Experience - 4 years working in Brussels first at the European Parliament, and then the European Youth Forum. She then worked at the London Enterprise Agency, a London-wide regeneration body

Elected to Parliament in 2005

Margaret Curran     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 18

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Glasgow

Experience - Community worker and then a lecturer in community education at the University of Strathclyde. Previously elected to Scottish Parliament in 1999

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Owen Smith     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 15

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Sussex

Experience - Did 5 years in the Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals industry then 10 years as a radio producer. Followed by 3yrs as a Government Special Adviser

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Maria Eagle     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 7

Educated at Comprehensive School then Oxford University then College of Law, London

Experience - Worked as a solicitor from 1990 to 1997

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Lucy Powell     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 0

Educated - Comprehensive School then Oxford University then King's College London

Experience - Parliamentary assistant for Beverley Hughes MP in 1997. Worked for Government quango Britain in Europe (BiE) in a public relations role and later as their head of regional campaigning. Then worked for NESTA (the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) another quango. Finally worked for Ed Milliband before entering Parliament

Elected to Parliament in 2012

Jon Trickett     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 12

Educated at Grammar School

Experience - Outside of politics from 1974-86 he worked as a builder and plumber

Elected to Parliament in 1996

Gloria De Piero     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 13

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Central England then University of Westminster then University of London

Experience - Journalism career from 1997 to 2010

Elected to Parliament in 2010

Chris Leslie     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 0

Educated at Grammar School then University of Leeds

Experience - Was a political research assistant from 1994 to 1997

Elected to Parliament in 1997

Baroness Royall     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 0

Educated at Grammar School then University of London

Experience - Special adviser to Neil Kinnock in the 1980s. In 2003 she became head of the European Union's office in Wales

Elected to Parliament, No! - House of Lords

Lord Bassam     Years employed in the ‘real world’ – 9

Educated at Comprehensive School then University of Sussex then University of Kent

Experience - Social worker who moved on to other roles in local government after a period as an unemployed squatter.

Elected to Parliament, No - House of Lords

What Can We Ascertain From This?

The average number of years worked outside of politics by the shadow cabinet is 6.4 years per member

Only 7 of the 27 members have worked more than 10 years in a ‘proper’ job

The 8 most senior members of the shadow cabinet have a total of 27 years in a proper job between them (I’ve got more than that !!!)

Only one member has done a truly “working class” job, that being Jon Trickett who was a builder and plumber

A third (9) of the 27 shadow cabinet members have done a year or less of work outside of politics

All the shadow cabinet (with the exception of Ivan Lewis and Jon Trickett) have been to University

Despite Labour constantly attacking the Tories as being a bunch of posh OxBridge toffs, 10 of the shadow cabinet went to Oxford or Cambridge

6 members of the shadow cabinet went to private school, with a further 4 going to Grammar school.

7 members of the shadow cabinet only entered Parliament in 2010 or later, highlighting their inexperience. This proportion of junior MPs in a cabinet is almost unheard of.

Outside of education, law, quangos and journalism not a single one of them has run a business. If they do win the election, how on earth can they generate growth in the UK when none of them has any business experience, they don't understand business, because of this they have no sympathy for business and will therefore fail to gain the support of business. Don't forget business isn't just the corporate multi-nationals, its the small self-employed business' that are run on a shoe string. Labour proved their lack of understanding and sympathy for these small business' with their recent announcement that they'd extend paternity leave if they got in.

The bigger issue is that more than two thirds of the Labour shadow cabinet easily qualify as career politicians. What wisdom and experience of the world can we expect them to bring to the UK if they get elected in May? Answer – None, because they have none themselves.

People will still continually blindly vote for Labour though. It seems they have lost the ability to think for themselves, they basically think, daddy voted labour so I have to vote labour. A committed Labour voter would keep on voting for a skunk if it had a red rosette tied to its tail!

The Age of the Career Politician

One in seven MPs has never had a proper job. Many more have worked only briefly as lobbyists, speech writers or PR advisers. Of course, lots of good people go into politics with a desire to benefit society. But career politicians have gradually changed the makeup of the House of Commons and diminished the standing of Parliament. Career politicians can’t empathise with the lives of the electorate because they don’t know about ordinary working life. Their engagement feels false and undermines trust.

How can someone go from school to university then into politics and expect to have a rounded view of life? They drift along within the cloistered & dreaming spires of academia before being "picked up" and parachuted into the Westminster bubble without ever having to earn a penny by their own wits or the sweat of their brow.

Andrew Marr – Right For Once

Andrew Marr, the former BBC Political Reporter did an interview last year where he stated that “Aspiring politicians should not be allowed to become MPs until they are 40”, He said politicians should have to ‘do something first’ to tackle a lack of ‘gritty real-world experience’ in the House of Commons. The broadcaster pointed out that MPs used to spend years in different careers first. Many had ‘built their own companies and knew the inside out of a balance sheet’.

He stated  “When I started out politics reporting, there were still Tories who had had a good war, built their own companies, had really good experience, knew the inside out of a balance sheet, had employed and sat and worried about profits. On the Labour side you had ex-miners, metal workers, ex-factory hands, ex-posties. So there were people all over the House of Commons who had done other things first and that really mattered. We’ve lost most of that gritty, real-world experience in the House of Commons”.

For a change - I can’t help agree with him! But, in addition to being over 40, they need to have done something sensible and constructive in life and gained some relevant experience by it, they need to have some links with the constituency they wish to represent, and they need to be vetted to make sure they aren't going to be an embarrassment, (eg drug taking or breaking the law in any other way, having dodgy financial or sexual practices), in other words they should be checked out to make sure they are decent, upstanding members of society. I know this is stating the bleeding obvious but the bleeding obvious seems to have disappeared in today's world. Oh and another thing, ministerial appointees should be required to have prior detailed knowledge of their brief rather than their face fitting or as a favour for services rendered !!

Sea Change Needed

Every elected official not just MP's should have non-political jobs in industry or society before being allowed to stand. A minimum of 10 years in real jobs working for commercial companies or indeed being successfully self employed should be mandatory. We need real people with the right qualities to solve the real problems we have in this country. This work/life experience must not be politics related, no lobbyists, no researchers, etc

It should be that you have a minimum of 10 years of this ‘real work’ before your name can appear as a candidate for MP, along with strict limits on the amount of money and time for ‘additional’ work outwith MP duties once you get there - and, if legally possible, some way to help curtail those directorships MPs walk into after they leave due to "having helped out" while they were in power. And don't anyone say "no one would want to be an MP with such restrictions", Really? There are millions of dedicated volunteers working for other people for literally nothing up and down the country? I’m sure they’d happily stand. The people who would make the best politicians are those who would not dream of going round pontificating about what other people should do.

We should also require that prospective MPs are resident in their constituency for perhaps 5 or 10 years before standing for election. No more parachuting the great and worthy into safe seats as a reward for being a compliant party lackey.

Changing the name would be a big call too, say ‘MP’ to ‘RP’ as in Representative of the People. The role shouldn't sound like a member of an exclusive club.

Wisdom Needed

If you were designing a democratic Country from scratch the last thing you would come up with is what we have now. This isn't just a Labour Party issue, it's across all three main parties. Politics is seen as a career these days, and the way to climb up the career ladder is to basically lick the arse of the leadership. Do we really want this? I know I don’t!

Wisdom comes from experience and age. Another thing we have is too many MPs who are too young and show absolutely no common sense. Over the years the age of Prime Ministers has come down and it is quite obvious by the way this country is declining rapidly that they lack experience, authority and judgement. Parliament is full of immature airheads who have the responsibility to run this country and in political terms they can't even tie their own laces.

Office managers is what we get at the moment, not Statesmen or Stateswomen, We need wise people that know how the population has to live much more than how the political system works to make the laws we have to live under.

We need wise people who know what is happening in the real world to run the country. We need politicians of conviction not idiots who are making a career out of it. - They should get some life experience of their own before they tell us how to live ours.

.....Oh and if we were to require their IQ to be above 40 as well, we might stand a chance of getting a half decent Government one day.