Public faith in politics has to be restored
Not only has Nick Clegg undergone the discomfort of having to make a televised apology for breaking his pre-election pledge on tuition fees, but there is now a music video on the internet lampooning the broadcast.
The video sets his apology to music and reworks the use of the phrase "I'm sorry" into the chorus of the song.
It was created by Alex Ross and James Herring of news and satire website The Poke. A source close to the Deputy Prime Minister is reported to have said that Mr Clegg saw the video and thought it funny. So much so that he has agreed to the song's release as a charity single.
He deserves credit for that and for making the apology in the first place.
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Unfortunately for him, however, it is unlikely to win over the large number of people who feel betrayed over this issue.
His broadcast has met with particular criticism because he was not saying sorry for putting up tuition fees.What he was apologising for was making a pledge not to do so which he later realised he could not deliver.
The mistake was the pledge; not the policy.
However, the bigger point is that, whatever the nuances, the public are just fed up with politicians not living up to their words.
It is one of the main reasons that public faith in British politics has sunk so low.
Mr Clegg understood this in a pre-election broadcast when he told the nation that he believed it was time for promises to be kept.
Surrounded by pieces of paper gusting down the street to represent the trail of broken pledges over the past 30 years, he said it was time to change things.
He said the public had been promised fairer taxes, better schools for everyone and cleaner politics, only to be let down.
It was time for promises to be kept, he said.
And that broadcast obviously struck a chord because Mr Clegg experienced a surge of public support which had the other party leaders famously saying: "I agree with Nick."
How long ago all of that seems and, of course, how ironic that Mr Clegg now finds himself making an apology for his own broken promise.
But what he said back then was right. Election pledges have to be honoured if public faith in politics is to be restored.
Comments
by Bob491
Saturday, September 22 2012, 12:25AM
“As stated Clegg was merely apologising for making a pledge to remove all tuition fees. He did not apologise for forcing many youngsters to abandon any thought of a university education. After all who wants a £70,000 debt hanging over them in their twenties when they wish to save up for a mortgage and start a family, especially with house rents being pushed through the roof by greedy landlords.
But how about apologies from Shapps for leading a double life as Michael Green the internet marketing guru and profiteering by possibly illegal means. Google have blocked his websites.
Or apologies from Hunt then Culture secretary for almost daily contacting Murdoch and his infamous News Corp and then sacking his unpaid messenger boy.
And apologies from Mitchell the Chief Whip for his pompous tirade against a policeman who after all as only doing his job.
Not to mention the Con boy Osborne for being a such a useless Chancellor, and Cameron for being so dishonest - what he says and what he does are usually completely opposite.
And biggest of all, an apology for encouraging the extermination of badgers against all scientific and moral advice.
Of course they should all have resigned, but as we found with Parsons, Conservatives don't like facing up to their responsibilities, do they.”
by llamalamb
Friday, September 21 2012, 6:38PM
“Public faith in politicians will only be restored when those in power can be seen to be honest and accountable. Lying, fiddling your expenses, breaking promises, avoiding tax, being in denial and carrying on in a posh boy fashion without showing any awareness of ordinary peoples lives is no way to act if you expect to be respected.”
by prog_rock_fan
Friday, September 21 2012, 4:30PM
“Isn't it redundant to make a parody video of Mr Clegg's remarks?
The man is a walking, talking self-parody.”
by CGLee
Friday, September 21 2012, 4:21PM
“If you take the headline to this article, I am afraid that all politicians, both national and local, and of all parties, are going to find it very difficult to regain the ground that they have lost following the expenses scandal, broken promises, and going back on election manifestos.
We have had the disgrace of the leader of Leics. County Council's behaviour and the pay debacle of Leicester's mayor, which he somehow managed to rescue.
I am sorry to say that they are all in it for what they can get, and integrity is way down the list of priorities.”
by DBLeicester
Friday, September 21 2012, 2:17PM
“Politics, albeit local or national in this Country have been dragging themselves through the muck for too long to restore faith so easily. Broken promises after broken promises do not in any way promote confidence. We need as a Nation to adopt a new approach to Politics, weeding out the dead wood, the thieves and the corrupt, and bringing in more working class men and women. How can anyone who is a millionaire and who has been educated at Eton or similar possibly understand the woes and difficulties of everyday living? They have literally no idea. Promoting false promise and lies clearly does not help, but having no idea in the first place is for me the biggest issue here. We need a new Party in this Country who will be fair and honest, a party that recognises that it's not just the wealthy that drive the economy, but the working man too. We need honesty, fairness and integrity, not lies, corruption and grovelling apologies. With this bunch of self serving cretins in Government as we speak, we have no chance.”
by the-market
Friday, September 21 2012, 11:21AM
“I am not sure if the problem is "top down"or "bottom up".
But lets have an observation about local politics.
Soulsby promised an open council.Surely a joke.Ask the residents of Birstall with reference to gipsy sites.
Ask Thurnby Lodge residents on what they think of the council.
Ask Oadby/Wigston residents on the selling off of car parks.
Ask traders in The City about access to parking.
Ask why we still have streets full of pot holes.
Ask why so many council employees have been sacked,due to cut backs,but give them selves payrises .”
by gw5434
Friday, September 21 2012, 10:35AM
“What we are seeing nationally is what the lib dems have been doing for years around here.
They promise whatever anyone wants on the doorstep, run gutter election campaigns which smear opposition candidates (does anyone remember Jill Hope claiming Edward Garnier had cancer on the radio?) and then when they get in, they do nothing because they constantly sit on the fence and are not capable of running anything. They are inept and lazy.
They then crow about minor things and when anyone criticises them, they either take some moral high ground or whine that people are "ideological", "sniping" or "carping". you only have to have read their latest Focus leaflet to see what happens when they get found out.
What have they achieved around here? As far as i can see, there biggest achievement is getting away with their shyster act for so long.”