ABSTRACT
British politics is in something of a state of flux. The New Labour project that promised to reshape and renew the UK is now over, and an era of coalition government has begun. The constitutional reforms that, in many ways, were the hallmark of Tony Blair’s time as Prime Minister, look set to continue with electoral reform, the power of recall and fixed term parliaments just some of the many proposals being considered. The expenses scandal of 2009, coupled with the international economic downturn, plunged the previously serene world of Westminster politics into crisis, with the number of MPs retiring in 2010 the largest single total (150 out of 646) since the war. It remains to be seen how deeply the crisis will affect the way that party politics are conducted in the UK but the problem that lay at the heart of it was about much more than simply parliamentary privileges being abused: the very real anger British voters felt in the summer of 2009 was the result of a dismay at the way their elected representatives had lost sight of their core role – to serve the public – and instead focused on serving themselves. The entire concept of career (not necessarily professional) politicians who climb their way up the party ladder into heady positions of power without really experiencing real life or holding down a real job is being rethought as politicians of all parties try desperately to reconnect with British voters, and convince them that they are ‘just like them’.
