Recent articles by Alistair Campbell and Alan Catzeflis made for grim reading as both highlighted alarming changes in the current attitude towards UK politics – a frightening apathy paradoxically coupled with a growing acceptance of devolved administrations.
We may still be some way from proportional representation but until our electorate engages with politics from an informed point of view we will be stuck with a woeful ‘first past the post system’ and second-rate and self-seeking career politicians like Boris Johnson. How can we therefore motivate a ‘reality TV’, ‘quick fix’ generation electorate with no real political education whatsoever at school (it suits the Tories to maintain this status quo) and equip them with the facility to analyse the political spin they’re fed?
Democracy, as we know it today, is genuinely outmoded and exists in name only as it is utter madness and socially irresponsible to allow important decisions to be made by those who don’t care or don’t understand. Democracy only works for the benefit of all if the majority of those voting know what’s going on and what they’re doing but the UK is at an ‘all time low’ here in terms of political awareness and social participation. This state of affairs is further compounded by our current crop of lacklustre politicians so who can save things? Marcus Rashford that’s who!
Rashford’s status as ‘international sporting icon’, ‘socially minded individual’ and all-round genuine nice guy has allowed him to successfully drive through his ‘free school meals’ campaign and challenge the government’s mealy-mouthed response where the Labour opposition (!) could not! The power and the appeal of such individuals to a vast swathe of the general public cannot be denied and if it takes folk like Marcus Rashford to rouse a lethargic public so be it. We live in different times and there is without doubt, an untapped mother lode of popular and populist figures who should be called upon to help educate, rejuvenate and motivate our indifferent body politic and we need to deploy these ‘stars’ in our education system…not just in schools but through the media and social media.
The right to vote should be dependent on all citizens first having had some rudimentary political education either at school or by the likes of Marcus Rashford through the media…we simply cannot allow a slothful and dispassionate public to return another government and ‘leader’ such as we currently have. The analogies are myriad – we wouldn’t expect folk to be given driving licences without them first learning to drive but we allow the politically ignorant or those who ‘couldn’t care less’ to vote and affect our future! It’s crazy!
Wake up Britain and heed the words of Marcus Rashford.
Rhodri Davies
Weybridge
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