Business as usual: on re-establishing ‘order’ in British politics.

There is a sense of excitement in the current reporting on developments in British politics. The Labour Party is leading in opinion polls vis-à-vis the Conservative government (politics.co.uk, 22 December 2021), a big back bench rebellion against the Prime Minister Boris Johnson over Covid measures adds to the tensions (The Guardian, 14 December 2021), and then a massive swing in a byelection results in a new Liberal MP (The Guardian, 17 December 2021). Earlier, the media reported positively on Labour Party Keir Starmer’s re-shuffling of his shadow cabinet, who has ‘chosen shadow ministers for their perceived ability’ (Peston, 29 November 2021). Apparent disagreements between Starmer and the deputy party leader Angela Rayner provide further excitement (Kuenssberg, 29 November 2021). The message is clear, we are back to business as usual. 

Politics consists again of Prime Minister’s question time, voting in parliament, opinion polls and elections. The media, political observers and MPs alike are content, everything is as it should be. There are even talks about the Labour Party potentially winning the next general elections considering the shambolic performance by the Prime Minister, the sleaze and double standards, which characterise the current government. The fact that there is little discussion on policy contents, the fact that Starmer’s Labour Party does not put forward any clear, bold policy alternatives is not noted as problematic. Politics has returned to being political theatre for the entertainment of the masses.

 

Gone are the days when the Labour Party under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn wanted to break open the mould of the Westminster bubble. Gone are the days, when senior leaders of the Labour Party went into the country to listen to people what their real problems are. Gone are the days, when ordinary people could have the feeling that it mattered what they thought about politics beyond voting every four years. Gone are also the days, when a more serious challenge to inequality and big corporations was on the cards.

 

Centre-right and centre-left political observers may be content with this state of affairs and happily report on endless squabbles in parliament. What is overlooked, however, is the fact that despite all the discussion and debates, despite all the voting and clamouring for media attention, no real political change is visible. With Starmer questioning re-nationalisation of key industries, for example, and cosying up to British employers (The Guardian, 21 November 2021), we can be assured that whatever future elections will bring, the current societal dynamics, in which the gap between rich and poor is ever widening, will continue unabated.

 

MPs, journalists and political observers should, however, be aware that young people are no longer satisfied with the political theatre of domestic elections or intergovernmental conferences such as COP 26, where there is a lot of grandstanding but few concrete, urgently needed policies. They should note that black and ethnic minorities are no longer prepared to accept deeply institutionalised racism, that women will no longer accept widespread gender discrimination in society. Underneath this return to business as usual there is a groundswell of opposition slowly building up, which will eventually break apart the fetters of representative democracy and open up space for true democratic, participatory policy-making.

Andreas Bieler

Professor of Political Economy

University of Nottingham/UK

Andreas.Bieler@nottingham.ac.uk

Personal website: http://andreasbieler.net

24 December 2021