The Death of Accountability: How Politicians Betrayed Their Voters

The days of responsible politics are over. No longer can politicians be trusted to deliver voter 'promises'. What used to be a respected institution, Parliament is now a cesspit of career politicians who have no interest in the public's voice or cares.

Unfortunately, pinpointing when this truly began is tricky. One could point to the benefits scandal that shook the foundations of British politics back in 2009 which led to the prosecution of several Lords and MPs.

Or perhaps it started with the introduction of government whips, a contentious issue still today, with many arguing that they intend to silence the voice of constituents by installing party principles over voter's voices.

Whatever it may be, politicians have become undeniably self-obsessed, consequently becoming disengaged in the politics of their local areas and prioritising their Westminster careers instead. Even Keir Starmer himself can't seem to take much responsibility for the evident mishaps of his still relatively new government. He continues to libel and blame the Conservative's 14 years of mismanagement as to why his government have had to take 'tough decisions'.

Undoubtedly, cleaning up the mess left by the Tories was going to be a monumental task for any government. With an exorbitant national debt, rife immigration and worsening public services, Labour couldn't have been left a much worse situation to untangle. But they will soon have to take responsibility for their own actions. They too can't continue to exonerate themselves for the causes of a Britain in rapid decline.

And yet, despite this, the platitudinal £22 billion pound 'black hole' that the Conservatives left them, continues to define their policy. The Labour Party seems to resuscitate this remark time and time again, but continue to spend more and more of the public's money. Keir Starmer's recent letter to UK regulators asking for advice on how to grow the economy, shows the level of economic competence that his party exudes. They, like the Conservatives, have a poor understanding of taxation and its burden on families across the nation who already have enough costs to worry about.

What's more worrying is the level of government debt that plagues the economy. Under both the Conservatives and the Labour Party, Britain has become hell-bent on spending well beyond its means. Somewhere down the road, politicians began to promise more and more to voters whilst delivering less and less. Politics has descended into a game of surface-level promises which won't be kept. Promises that aren't funded or planned-out, but promises that will undoubtedly secure MPs a seat in Parliament. Promises that seek to do apparent 'good'.

Unfortunately, as a nation, we love to seek news of the 'successes' of the government. We hate to read miserable news headlines and love to find comfort. But we can't continue to. We must seek the truth that politicians have led us into the mess that this country finds itself in. We must hold our MPs accountable for their mismanagement of the economy and their groundless promises. Nor can we let them to continue to plague the country with their bureaucracy whilst continuing to kick the can further down the road for other politicians to deal with.

It's no wonder that political engagement is the lowest it's ever been. Who would want to vote for career politicians claiming to represent them?