James Grundy MP: Time for a return of 'boring' politics after so much activity

I am pleased to say a sense of stability has returned to the House of Commons since Rishi Sunak won the race to become Conservative leader, and as a consequence was asked to serve as Prime Minister by His Majesty King Charles.
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We are now on our fifth Prime Minister since 2016. The country is in dire need of some good old fashioned boring politics, as it were.

I am very keen that this PM serves his whole term of office, which, whilst it might seem a quaint concept given the turmoil of the last few years, was of course, the norm until relatively recently. I'm a bit old fashioned like that.

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Indeed, politics internationally has not been so turbulent since the 1930s, with far left and far right movements springing up everywhere around the world.

Leigh MP James GrundyLeigh MP James Grundy
Leigh MP James Grundy

Over the past few years we have dealt with, and indeed, are still dealing with, both a world spanning plague and a major war in Europe, something that has not been since the Spanish Flu epidemic struck the world in the aftermath of World War One.

Just like then, war and plague has brought economic turmoil.

In the late 1920s and thirties, this took the form of the Great Depression.

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In years to come, others may look back on something called the 'Great Russian Recession', as the entirety of Western civilisation reels from the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine.

The lights may yet go out this winter from Poland to Portugal, and from Italy to Ireland, as world energy prices continue to be deliberately destabilised as political leverage by the Russian tyrant, Vladimir Putin.

If you had told me I would be dealing with issues of this magnitude when I was a newly elected MP in 2019, I would have struggled to believe you.

I observed to a colleague in Parliament the other day that, as new MPs, we had probably seen more world history in the short time we had been in Parliament than some elder statesmen had seen in decades.

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To be a new MP during these difficult times has been a baptism of fire, and I am extremely grateful I had my experience as a former local councillor to draw on.

There is no handbook for new MPs entering Parliament for the first time. We know this, because we looked, as some colleagues have wryly observed.

There is an old Chinese proverb, and it roughly translates as 'may you live in interesting times'.

When I learned this saying, I was surprised to learn that this was meant to be a curse.

On checking Chinese history, this became less surprising.

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On living through the last couple of years whilst serving as an MP, I felt I gained a true understanding of the meaning of the phrase, if you catch my drift.

As I said earlier, Britain now needs a hearty dose of 'boring' politics, because I, and I suspect you, dear reader, have lived through quite enough 'interesting times' recently.

Until then, we must soldier on as best we can, but who knew boring politics could be such an appealing concept?