
You’d be forgiven for thinking so. We have a two-party system with a lack of diversity in representation. Due to our “First Past the Post” electoral system, we are ruled by a party with a minority of votes which is a poor starting point.
Looking at diversity, of the 650 MPs elected in 2019, 41% were female, 10% were from minority backgrounds, 6% were from the LGBT community, 30% of MPs had private schooling, 24% went to Oxford or Cambridge University, 0.8% were disabled and the average age was 50.
So, when people say that politicians are out of touch and don’t understand what life is like for most people, this explains why.
However, this isn’t true of all parties. If we take a look at parties other than the two main ones, we see much better representation and a commitment to maintain diverse representation. With politicians from the same walks of life as more people and living with the same challenges, we can expect better understanding of what changes are needed.
This is why we need to look for politicians and parties who place high importance on representation and understanding real people. They do exist!
Sources:
Leave a comment