Does being ‘genuinely local’ make for a better MP?
As I pose this question, I should first of all declare an interest. My parents moved to a small two bedroom terrace house in Denton back in 1975. I have, since being a one-year-old baby, pretty much lived all my life here. I grew up in Denton; I went to pre-school, primary school and secondary school here. After a short stint in Wales, at college (where incidentally I met my wife), I returned to the town and became a Labour Councillor for Denton West on Tameside Council. Now my own family are growing up here. I don’t suppose you can get much more local than any of that!
During my own parliamentary selection back in 2004, my selling point to local Labour Party members was that I was the “local choice”. I played heavily on the above back-story against the 68 other aspiring candidates from all over the UK. The selection was, rightly, a very tightly fought process and not one I want to rush into again! To cut a long story short, I was successful, became the Labour candidate, and was duly elected as MP at the 2005 election.
Being the ‘local’ MP does make it extra-special at a personal level. It sounds very corny, but it really is a real honour and privilege to represent your hometown in the House of Commons. But many of my constituents know me warts and all. They’ve seen me grow up and they’ve also seen me make mistakes. That’s the downside.
The reason I am blogging this is because last week a very good friend of mine, Luciana Berger was selected as the Labour parliamentary candidate for Liverpool Wavertree. She had to endure an equally gruelling selection process as I had gone through several years earlier and, like me, she won on the first ballot by a large margin.
I know Luciana very well and I know she has all the skills to be an excellent Member of Parliament, both in Westminster and, importantly, back in Liverpool. She is not just a credible candidate; she is an exceptional one. But between you, me (and anyone watching BBC Northwest Tonight last night), she’s not from Liverpool! What’s more, for some small sections in the Liverpool Labour Party, that’s apparently a problem! I actually think the real issue is their candidate didn’t win.
Hilariously the Liverpool Echo newspaper even made Luciana sit a ‘Liverpool test’! I’m sure it is to her eternal shame that she did not know Gerry and the Pacemakers sang ‘Ferry Cross the Mersey’ or that the late, great, Bill Shankly was manager of Liverpool FC – even this Mancunian MP knew that – but to be fair, she got the other questions right!!
So should MPs only ever be from that community they seek to represent? Does it really matter? I actually don’t think it does.
Since I posted this article, both Tom Harris MP and Jonathan Isaby have made similar points on the issue.
Of course it matters. I think it’s clear that constituents are better represented by MPs who know the area and understand local issues. You only have to look at some of the ‘career’ politicians who are parachuted into safe seats to see the imbalance in how successful they are at representing their constituents.
As someone who witnessed Luciana’s campaign and voted for her, I can confirm that she did a sterling job. Being local is not important – being a good Parliamentarian is; this is Luciana’s destiny. I just hope it is for Wavertree and the current nonsense does not deprive us of a potential first class MP.
I think it’s less important than integrity, honesty and being in the job for the right reasons. An MP should have a firm understanding of local issues but this knowledge can be aquired.
It all depends on who is voting and what they are voting for. Most people want their local MP to be someone they can relate to, and who will understand and be sympathetic to their problems when they call on them to help them. In my opinion, the recent MP’s expenses scandal has produced a further divide between politicians and the people they’re sent to represent, and having career politicians elected in the forthcoming election will only make that worse. Having local people representing local views in Parliament is what can restore public trust in the politicians that are sent to the ‘Ivory Tower’ of Westminster.
Luciana rocks! She is exactly what our Parliament needs.
Nice blog by the way,good to see an MP engaging directly with voters. I hope you aren’t going to be like the scores of other MPs who blog and not keep yours up to date??
Thanks. I will certainly do my best to keep posting regular articles (easier said than done, I appreciate!) Hopefully they will generate some good debates too.
This was a nice post! I am looking for some related pictures. Anybody got some good ones?
“I don’t suppose you can get much more local than any of that!”
I think Jamie Reed MP might defeat you on the “most local MP” stakes. He’s at least the 4th generation of his family to live in the constituency he now represents. His great-grandfather is buried in the remains of Haig Colliery and he’s only recently described himself as a “third generation Sellafield worker”.
I think it definitely is an advantage to be local, as what matters to the public will also matter to you. Maybe we should give you a ‘Denton Test!’ I’m sure you’d pass with flying colours. Keep up the good work! PS Do your parents still live in Denton?
I’ve already done a “Stockport Test” for the Stockport Express newspaper and scored 9/10 (plus an extra bonus point for very sadly knowing how many bricks – to the nearest million – are in the Stockport viaduct (11m))… The question I got wrong was how old is Stockport Market – I said 150 years old, it is actually 750! Yes my dad still lives in Denton. My mum died in 1994.
The Snooty Little Madam has stated that IF ELECTED she will honor us with her presence and actually live in the constituency. She is endemic of what is wrong with the party – a student politician with no ties to the area can practice elsewhere – A life long labour voter I will be putting my cross beside the name of Colin Eldridge Lib Dem who is a real person with local issues at heart rather than some career politician whose only concern is her own development.