Johnny English

This may be controversial, but I believe Britain urgently needs to raise the standards we demand of those who govern us. Firstly, I believe membership of the House of Commons should be reserved for British-born citizens. Historically, Parliament had far stricter eligibility requirements, and I believe we should seriously debate whether those representing our country should have been born here. Secondly, should absolutely anybody be able to become an MP, regardless of age, life experience or professional background? Perhaps it's time to introduce a minimum age that ensures those entering Parliament have actually experienced adult life, worked, paid taxes and understood the consequences of the decisions they will make on behalf of millions. But my biggest concern is the extraordinary way we appoint government ministers. How can somebody with absolutely no relevant professional experience suddenly find themselves running one of the largest and most complex departments in the country? If you're appointed Health Secretary, shouldn't you have substantial experience in healthcare, whether as a senior NHS leader, clinician or someone who has successfully managed a major healthcare organisation? If you're appointed Home Secretary, shouldn't you have demonstrable experience in policing, security, immigration, justice or another relevant field? In the private sector, you wouldn't dream of appointing somebody to run a multimillion-pound organisation simply because they were popular, politically connected or good at making speeches. It would be commercial suicide. Yet in Westminster, we routinely hand politicians responsibility for departments controlling tens or even hundreds of billions of pounds, employing enormous workforces and making decisions affecting every household in Britain, regardless of whether they have ever managed anything remotely comparable. And then we wonder why public services underperform, projects run billions over budget, taxes keep rising and taxpayers receive increasingly poor value for money. We demand qualifications, experience, competence and accountability from people running businesses. Why on earth do we demand so much less from the people running our country? Being elected should give you the privilege of representing your constituents. It should not automatically qualify you to run a major government department. Political loyalty is not a qualification. Being a career politician is not a substitute for real-world experience. And winning an election does not magically turn somebody into an expert. Britain desperately needs a government that values competence over political convenience, experience over ideology and results over rhetoric. We are running one of the world's largest economies, not a university debating society. Until we start demanding the same professional standards from Westminster that we expect from the private sector, we will continue paying more in taxes while receiving less in return. The problem isn't simply which political party is in power. It's the appallingly low standards we have come to accept from those entrusted with running our country.