Becoming An MP
Why did you become an MP?
How do you get a job as an MP?
Getting a job as an MP is simple in one respect, and almost impossible in another. It's simple in so far as you join the political party, you get a local party to choose you, ask the candidate and you win the constituency selection to be the candidate. OK, that's simple. It's almost impossible in as far as there are billions of people who want to do it, and if you're an outsider going into that constituency, which most of time you will be, and your chances can be shredded before you've even walked in the door. It doesn't matter how good you are. The thing you have to remember is that in politics, the best candidate usually doesn't win. It's not to do with merit, it helps, but it's not to do with it, that's not the deciding factor usually. So becoming a MP, I would really encourage people to do it, and the first step is joining the political party, but before that, the first step is having any convictions, and wanting to do it for the right reasons, but then join the party, win the selection, then win the election, hey you're in power.
What makes a good MP?
A good MP is one that will actually really look at the lives of their constituents, be part of those lives, and you've got to live in the constituency, You also need to understand what goes on in the constituency and really care about it. But caring isn't enough. You've got to be able to deliver things. You've got to work out how the system functions. You've got to be able to persuade ministers. If you're in parliament and you can't persuade ministers, government ministers, to change things, then I don't see the point in being in parliament.
What are the responsibilities of an MP?
An MP has responsibilities towards the people they serve. Quite often, especially if you represent a tricky constituency which has got a lot of deprivation, you will get an endless stream of people coming to your door. Your responsibility is to work out who you can help, who you should be able to help, and who it's not your job to help. Your responsibility also is to scrutinize government. I was on the Select Committee. There are many ways you can scrutinize the executive, but that's another responsibility. You also have responsibility to your party as well. You have responsibility to the constituency, the electorate, to Parliament, so that you are scrutinizing government, and then also to the political party, to make sure that you think your party is pursuing the right policies and is in a position to put their manifesto into practice.
What does an MP do in an average day?
Are there busy and quiet periods during the year?
There are definitely quieter periods during the year. August is the one month when it's called silly season. In theory, politicians are allowed August off. But constituents would say to me, "God, it's outrageous, you get three month holidays," as an MP. But that's only when Parliament is sitting and, in fact, that was changed. MP's might be away from Parliament in August, but often you're still dealing with correspondence and you're always dealing with local groups and local issues.
