Substack diary no.146: Thursday, 7th. May 2026

People go to the polls today in Britain but only in certain parts of the country; there is no voting in my part of Devon today. I was reminded of how, once upon a time, politicians would lead and take time to listen to people and engage in meaningful conversation. Those days are, sadly, very much in the past. The question is: when did politicians become followers rather than leaders?

I often ponder this question but have never been able to pin it down, and a diary entry such as this does not provide space for extensive thoughts. However, my starting point has always been based upon my time talking to politicians and sitting on panels in Parliament. There is no doubt that politicians have access to a wide range of quality data, knowledge, information and insight from the best minds in Britain on any given topic. In my book, more knowledge equals better decision-making. However, this knowledge is no longer shared, at least in any meaningful way, with the general population. Politicians respond rather than lead. Consequently, if a constituent on the doorstop says ‘stop the boats’ they do their best to accommodate them rather than to challenge, and hence we are in the mess we are in today.