by Bob Holman, a retired but still active community worker
and writerIn Channel 4's four programmes, called Tower Block of Commons, four wealthy MPs are parachuted into council estates to live for eight days with residents in tower blocks.
They did make the effort to get stuck in. I was impressed with Tim Loughton, the shadow childrens minister, on an estate in Birmingham. He got on well with a young father who was addicted to cannabis. They discussed the father's own difficult upbringing with both shedding tears.
Another Conservative, Nadine Dorries went to the South Acton Estate in London and succeeded in cooking a family dinner for £7.55.
Visibly distraught
Liberal Democrat, Mark Oaten, in Dagenham, was visibly distraught when taunted about his past scandal with a rent boy. He recovered and had a moving discussion with the woman in the flat on the subject of forgiveness.
When Labour's Austin Mitchell in Hull looked after some children, there was an hilarious scene when a small girl had to show him how to start the microwave by hitting the right spot with a hammer. He entertained the kids with his breezy style but, when the baby messed his nappy, he sent for his wife. He considered this to be women's work.
Aggressive questioning
The most powerful scenes concerned residents taking on MPs. Outside a shop, a small crowd aggressively questioned Tim Loughton about the legitimate crooks who coined in the expenses.
Nadine was caught with £50 in her bra when she was supposed to live on the level of Job Seekers Allowance. Her hostess accused her of cheating.
Mark Oaten criticised the amount a woman spent on fags. That evening, she downloaded his public expenses to which he had no reply.
The price of tea bags
Austin Mitchell did not know the price of tea bags, bananas, bread etc. An unemployed chef astutely pointed out that Austin with his salary over £60,000 could buy without bothering about the price while they had to know every item.
The justification given for this programme is that it opens the eyes of MPs. Only partly. In eight days, they saw only the surface. Poverty is long-term. It is about being in debt to loan sharks. I spent 25 years in deprived areas with an income never above the average wage. But I could leave. Real poverty is about being imprisoned in the worst housing.
The problem is that too few MPs have experienced life at the hard end. In 2005, only 6% came from working class backgrounds. The number who have attended posh schools and/or Oxbridge is increasing.
The recent report of The Speaker's Conference on Parliamentary Representation acknowledges that the Commons should reflect the diversity of peoples lives. Yet its recommendations will not bring in more from the working class.
TV programmes may entertain. Poverty will not be changed until the Commons includes far more MPs who know about it through experience.
Bob Holman's new book Keir Hardie. Labours Greatest Hero? is published on March 19 by Lion Hudson
Another Conservative, Nadine Dorries went to the South Acton Estate in London and succeeded in cooking a family dinner for £7.55.
Visibly distraught
Liberal Democrat, Mark Oaten, in Dagenham, was visibly distraught when taunted about his past scandal with a rent boy. He recovered and had a moving discussion with the woman in the flat on the subject of forgiveness.
When Labour's Austin Mitchell in Hull looked after some children, there was an hilarious scene when a small girl had to show him how to start the microwave by hitting the right spot with a hammer. He entertained the kids with his breezy style but, when the baby messed his nappy, he sent for his wife. He considered this to be women's work.
Aggressive questioning
The most powerful scenes concerned residents taking on MPs. Outside a shop, a small crowd aggressively questioned Tim Loughton about the legitimate crooks who coined in the expenses.
Nadine was caught with £50 in her bra when she was supposed to live on the level of Job Seekers Allowance. Her hostess accused her of cheating.
Mark Oaten criticised the amount a woman spent on fags. That evening, she downloaded his public expenses to which he had no reply.
The price of tea bags
Austin Mitchell did not know the price of tea bags, bananas, bread etc. An unemployed chef astutely pointed out that Austin with his salary over £60,000 could buy without bothering about the price while they had to know every item.
The justification given for this programme is that it opens the eyes of MPs. Only partly. In eight days, they saw only the surface. Poverty is long-term. It is about being in debt to loan sharks. I spent 25 years in deprived areas with an income never above the average wage. But I could leave. Real poverty is about being imprisoned in the worst housing.
The problem is that too few MPs have experienced life at the hard end. In 2005, only 6% came from working class backgrounds. The number who have attended posh schools and/or Oxbridge is increasing.
The recent report of The Speaker's Conference on Parliamentary Representation acknowledges that the Commons should reflect the diversity of peoples lives. Yet its recommendations will not bring in more from the working class.
TV programmes may entertain. Poverty will not be changed until the Commons includes far more MPs who know about it through experience.
Bob Holman's new book Keir Hardie. Labours Greatest Hero? is published on March 19 by Lion Hudson
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