Attack dogs in public debate. (Debate)

Fri 29 Oct 2021, 14:46 (last edited on Fri 29 Oct 2021, 14:47)

I agree, and if I can I'd like to give a couple of examples in support of this point.

I chair Westmill Windfarm coop and David Johnston is the local MP. Together with the solar coop we invited him to visit and learn about the community energy project. He came out to see us one Friday afternoon, I found him (and his parliamentary agent) both charming and genuinely interested in the project. He spent a couple of hours learning about us and offered to help us where he could. 

David is (I recall) one of the sponsors of a private members bill, which is looking at how communities could sell their electricity more easily. 

Subsequently David invited us to take part in a local debate about what Vale of White Horse could do in terms of climate change and COP26, and he put us in touch with a local business who were working in in the area.

In my previous life as a local government manager I worked with local (and a few national) politicians from all parties. In almost every case I found that they were doing the best for their communities. In almost every case they were polite, genuine and hard working. The rare exceptions were distributed evenly across the different political parties. 

So I strongly support the principle that we should value politicians and we should treat them with the same respect as we would other public servants.

Its also why I'm depressed when a small minority see public life as an opportunity for personal enrichment, because they are (or have been) exceptions, but their actions make life much harder for everyone else.

Thu 28 Oct 2021, 17:41

I would refer you to the letter from David Johnston, MP for Wantage, which is in today's Oxford Times. I am no fan of his politics but; read it through. He makes very cogent points about why many good people may be put off offering themselves for public service.

I believe in the old adage: "manners maketh man (woman)". Without courtesy in public debate, we descend into abuse and, before you know it, we have 'hate speech'.

 As Mr Johnston puts it: "too often people will say things from behind a screen that they would never say to someone's face".

I'm sure that the current leader of Oxfordshire County Council, among many others, will have experienced this kind of abuse. How do we combat this?

I guess that all we can do is to 'call it out' whenever we see it.