As we survey the political landscape post-election it seems to smack of what a battlefield must feel like at the end of any conflict. There are casualties, stories of false bravery, those who kept their heads down, appearing to take any scrap of reflected glory and those that shout the loudest to try to save their wounded pride by creating an aura full of emptiness around them. But we then ask ourselves, where are the leaders and the heroes? The answer seems to be that those who perceive themselves as the heroes or leaders are either throwing themselves into causes that they are inept to deal with or conjuring up new support in areas where they have by chance done something right for the first time, however much this might have been by chance. Who is to blame? Well the obvious scapegoats are as usual the media, those with values who refused to budge and anyone really that by besmirching their name politicians can deflect the vitriolic view of the public. The hung parliament continues to swing on its makeshift gibbet. One way then the other, first its left, then its right and then miraculously it budges to centre.
Those Leading should have values, honesty, the ability to unite and above all be able to feel empathy for the people of this country and their wish for someone to listen to their needs. Politics is about the people and delivering the best for them. It is not about making decisions and then creating a U-turn because policies have not been carefully enough thought through and it is certainly not about self-interest above all else.
So, what would a good leader do (I have to use good as I can’t see an excellent leader emerging in the next two decades). A good leader should be collaborative and be able to enter into dialogue with other ‘leaders’ to create the best way forward for the collective good. A good leader needs to let others have their heads and time to work things through. In our society of ‘give me it now I can’t wait’ we should be dictating our own pace. Whereas in Brexit, we are on the back foot we should not be going in either cap in hand or demanding the undemandable but working with our former ‘or soon to be former’ EU allies’ creating a new order where we still play some part in the ascendency.
How naïve were we to think that taking the country through a Brexit vote and a general election would result in a positive outcome, one disaster upon another creating not the stable base we wanted but unstable economic times just when we needed stability. Leaders don’t learn because they don’t listen. Where is the coach, preparing their team for the future, where is the facilitator supporting others to achieve, where is the commander and controller when we need the ship steering through stormy waters. Where are any of the leadership styles. Completely missing on all fronts at all times. Only the coalition possibilities are on the front foot standing to gain concessions and financial stability but at what cost to the country. That remains to be seen. Even the detested Thatcher and Blair years at least practiced their leadership skills in the right measures at the right time for long periods of their political reign helping the public to focus their attentions on a vision of the future. Without information on Europe and without underlying key political policy we as a country are running blind into what could be a very dark age. Someone for God’s sake step in to save us….and that’s not you Boris by the way.