I’ve been following the arguments surrounding the comments of my colleague Lee Anderson MP. He is a big supporter of his local food bank, donating money to it and working with it. Last week, he spoke up about it in the Commons, highlighting the budgeting and cooking lessons it offered service users.
These comments led to howls of outrage that an MP – and a Tory one at that (somewhat missing the point he is the son of a miner, was a miner himself and was a Labour politician most of his political career) – could be so patronising to those who need the help of food banks.
I’m not here to comment on his arguments one way or another. But I am here to argue that he should be allowed to speak up on what he both believes in and has experience without personal attacks.
We see this so often. Last year we had the report from the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities – made up from a near exclusive group from minority communities. It brought some new thinking, backed up with extensive data and research, yet was met with an extraordinary reaction, including bullying of the members.
Similarly, whenever anyone talks about the NHS possibly needing reform, there are cries of “privatisation”. A couple of years ago a BBC journalist rang me to ask about privatisation of the NHS and I asked if he could define what he meant. His answer was that it is a made up concept to frighten the electorate, agreeing that no one has any intention of privatising the NHS. But it suits politicians to scare the electorate in any way they can to secure support.
The reason this is important is that without honest debate, we cannot move forward. Uncomfortable ideas may be the truth. Or they may not. But to shout down any fresh, or controversial thought is to starve debate of ideas. If Lee Anderson has a valid point, should we not be trying to assess the truth behind his claims rather than shouting him down?
A few years ago, I campaigned with Martin Lewis to get financial education into the curriculum. We were successful and it was noted that some kids ended up helping their parents with budgeting. How will we know if there is a problem with cooking skills if we shout down proper debate whenever it is raised?