𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Watching some of our politicians appear in the media is like viewing a particularly cringeworthy episode of The Apprentice. Lord Sugar would boot them out instantly. They have the depth of a shallow puddle and zero integrity. There are also those who think they can take us for mugs and, in some cases, blatantly tell untruths.

When I was a child, we used to call it lying. Recent examples show how low the bar has fallen when it comes to those who somehow manage to make it into government. Treasury minister Emma Reynolds gave one of the most embarrassing interviews of recent times when she appeared on Nick Ferrari’s LBC breakfast show. Nick is a genius when it comes to political interviewing and knows his brief inside out. In this interview, the minister did not.

The topic was the government’s investment in transport infrastructure where one of the big price-tag projects is a new Lower Thames Crossing.

You would expect a Treasury minister to know the cost of this, but she was unable to give a figure beyond “several billion pounds.” The stated figure is up to £10billion.

She was also unable to name the start and finish point of the project. The answer is Gravesend in Kent and east of Tilbury in Essex. This is basic stuff.

There was mumbling, distraction and obfuscation. Watch the clip for yourself for the full experience and feel your toes curl. She might have been having a bad morning, but we really deserve better from someone playing a part in managing the nation’s finances.

A recent edition of the BBC’s Question Time programme saw another minister, Darren Jones, receive heckles from the audience when the topic of migrant small boat crossings cropped up.

He stated that “the majority of the people in these boats are children, babies and women.” This was simply a lie. Footage from the French beaches where these dinghies are launched from rarely shows women, babies or children.

The Home Office’s own figures show that since 2018, 73% of all those who have crossed the Channel in small boats to arrive in this country are adult men.

Darren later admitted he could have been “more specific” when discussing the issue but refused to apologise for getting it wrong. Funny that; there was a time when politicians said sorry or even resigned if they mucked something up; it is what you do if you possess integrity.

It is possible that Mr Jones genuinely believed what he was saying, though you would have to be living under a rock not to have witnessed the tens of thousands of men who have crossed the Channel in small boats in the last year.

Was he simply ignorant of the facts or trying to mislead the public over this vexing issue that is not only a threat to our national security but also costing taxpayers tens of millions of pounds. I will let you decide. Either way, we should expect more from our government officials. Other politicians are also sadly lacking when it comes to doing the job.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey should be congratulated for gaining a whopping 72 MPs at the last election, but does anyone have an idea what he stands for? His interviews and speeches sound like static with the occasional plea for more money for his pet causes but with zero idea of how to pay for it. Sorry Ed, but we expect our political party leaders to do better. Being an MP or politician is no easy gig.

Anyone who stands for office and is prepared to make significant sacrifices for public service should be applauded. Though it does seem in the last decade we have seen standards drop significantly. However, it is not all doom and gloom. Labour’s Health Minister Wes Streeting comes across well and seems mostly honest when it comes to the challenges of running the NHS. Rising

Conservative MP Katie Lam oozes quality with her recent parliamentary and media outings and has really made her mark. Gritty, honest and plain speaking.

Dr David Bull, Reform UK’s new chairman, appears so far to be one of those rare politicians who answers the questions put to him as opposed to fudging some kind of response.

There was a time when our political world contained proper “big beasts” on both sides of the chamber in the Commons: people with gravitas, ideas, vision and integrity.

These days it is all cheap soundbites, flip-flopping opinions based on the latest polling and vanity. The quality of today’s politicians must improve; though some days it feels like we are in for a long wait.