Politicians are from Mars
We need to find some means of interplanetary communication.
Politicians are from Mars
How do we communicate with them?
I find the subject of David Laws more depressing than anything else I’ve seen our politicians get up to this year. This is an intelligent man, with a reasonably high-level financial background, who thinks he can hide his homosexuality and channel taxpayers’ money to his partner, into the bargain.
If ever we needed confirmation that politicians inhabit another planet, here it is in the latest chapter of a book that started in modern times with Profumo and, no doubt, will continue sadly on.
It is hardly surprising, then, that when just about anyone from the business community decides to enter planet politician, they are quickly spat out again. So, as we are not going to change them, we have to find effective ways of communicating with their world.
The present furore about pending changes to CGT perfectly demonstrates the problem. A plethora of interest groups, including the CBI, BVCA, QCA and Chambers of Commerce, are all clamouring to be heard on the issue. Politicians could understandably just ignore this babble of voices or, instead, divide and rule if they have been schooled in the teachings of Machiavelli.
No, what small companies and their financiers need is a body that speaks with one voice – and I detect faint signs of stirrings in the jungle. First up is “TheCityUK”, which is an attempt to speak with a unified financial services voice. It has been set up in response to European political leaders, including our own, who have resolved that, as they can’t do much about the plight of the PIIGS, they might as well play the populist card by firing off at all and sundry in the City of London.
We need to follow TheCityUK’s example and set up our own unified small company powerhouse that has the resources and clout to command the continuous attention of the inhabitants of planet politician.
If we don’t, the SME community will remain nowhere in particular. Perhaps Real Business could get the ball rolling by inviting representatives from across the SME spectrum to come and debate such?
For more than 30 years, the City Grump has had experience of senior positions in most aspects of city life. These include stockbroking, stock exchanges, fund management and corporate finance.
Picture: source