🤪 Here’s a really CRAZY idea 😵💫 In the current political climate of anger and fear… Where everyone seems to hate everyone… And pretty much the only thing we seem to agree on is that EVERYONE hates politicians… Let’s decide how much to pay MPs by getting ~20 random members of the public in a room and letting them hash it out!!! 🤡😬🫠 Oh. But. Hang on… The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) actually… did that? Last month? And it produced a load of really useful insights and some really clear recommendations as to how to improve our democracy? Including that we’re probably paying MPs about right in salary terms but might need to think a bit more carefully about additional funding and expense structures? And that doing more of these kinds of forums, with randomly selected people coming together with experts on tap not on top, and actually being listened to, might really help rebuild trust in politics? Wow. Huh. Who knew? (Answer: no one, because most of our media are too busy staring into the chasm to notice that some folk are actually building some pretty effective bridges. But that’s a post for another time 🫢) You can read the exec summary of the IPSA Citizens’ Forum, independently facilitated by my old colleagues at New Citizen Project (well done team 👏), here: https://lnkd.in/ebeqTFcE
Lucy Bush take a look… well done Jon and team!
I've been wondering what a random public would say about the breakdown of public spending by category (public safety, health, education, infrastructure, etc) and level (national, state/provincial, local).
Indeed! 🙌🏻 Would be great to do a scan of media coverage (or lack of) towards community building and bridging, to spotlight perhaps how big a role the media plays in stirring divides? Politicians is one thing... But maybe the media is as big, or maybe the bigger problem here
Oliver Pickup - the future of work, playing out, right here, right now! I think you should talk to Jon Alexander - I think the ideas he has are changing how we work, how we live and eventually how we are governed. A great feature for you to write!
Love the post, too right! But I do think so-called mainstream media is now becoming a multiplier in the divisive politics we are seeing. I'm becoming increasingly frustrated about the assumptions various media commentators are making - parroting certain tropes and narratives, giving oxygen to blatant lies laid out by certain politicians. Whilst I appreciate politics is as much about the "vibe" and mood music, many of these journalists are simply chasing clicks, viewer or listener figures to meet expectations of commercial sponsors. All they are doing is amplifying the cycle of grievance politics we are in, and not deeply questioning what they are hearing. Don't get me started on social media, although it would seem that politicians (left and right) will get eventually get found out if they base serious policies on what they see on X, and assume the wider electorate will simply fall in line behind them.
Perhaps we could use a variation on citizens assemblies to choose our political representatives—instead of the broken electoral system?
Love it!
It was great to work with the team at New Citizen Project !
Impact Strategist / Producer on international documentary film, TV and radio projects. Independent Celebrant in Newcastle and the North-East creating individual, meaningful and memorable funerals.
3w"experts on tap and not on top" big yes to that!!