I also like the theory of experience but the main way they get that experience is by following party lines so they keep getting selected in easy-win seats so when they eventually move up to the Lords they're just a party stooge. So it is still far too party politics and cronies in the upper chamber IMO.
When they do white papers etc they do often bring in experts to work on it (tsars) but the problem is the government can just ignore their advice despite the evidence and knowledge they bring based on their own dogma. Remember the drug tsar who said drugs should be legalised, taxed etc. Very sensible, evidence based, policy recommendation. But that didn't fit in with the 'War on Drugs' mantra so they just tried to discredit him and ignored his proposals.
It is the bit of my plan that I would like to improve - how to get actual expertise in the areas that are being legislated on rather than party politics. Personally I think it should be you can't chair a committee/be Minister/Secretary unless you have expertise in the area it covers but then those being chosen will still be party affiliated and thus at risk of following the party line. Ccan you imagine a company employing someone with no background in finance and economics as their Finance Executive? But we do it all the time with the Chancellor as the job is seen as a 'reward' for loyalty to the PM and get their name in the hat as a potential successor.
Even moving to a grandee/crony list on a PV vote for the Lords would be quite a stretch to get politicians to agree to as it reduces their power. To do it so they are largely removed in favour of actual expertise, despite how sensible that would be, would be way too much for them to agree to from where we are now. It may only be gradual erosion but it may undermine the cliff to lead to a more drastic collapse later.
Oh yeah it’s very much “If I ruled the world” territory. But a man can dream. The lack of knowledge about the most basic stuff from those that lead the country is truly concerning. Worse is the half baked understanding of services like health and education because they’ve been service users at some point. At least with technology they accept they know nothing and let lobbyists write policy.
Worry with independent experts picked by politicians like we have now with advisors is they tend to pick the “expert” they know will tell them what they want. Needs to be a way for genuine expertise to get into the process.
Another pipe dream was making Secretaries of State directly elected and giving voters with some level of expert knowledge (trade association membership or a degree? I dunno) double votes on that post. So teachers votes for education secretary count double as do police officer votes for HS. Completely unworkable in reality (do I get a teacher vote as I hold a PGCE even though I haven’t taught for two and a half years?).
Overall I do still think the root problem isn’t the structures of power though, rather the selection process and withdrawal of politics from most people’s daily lives now unions barely exist. What’s the route for someone in industry to get elected other than being a local party weirdo for ten years?
