Blunkett: No more corporate greed
The political system needs to put people before “corporate greed,” former home secretary David Blunkett has said.
Speaking in a lecture for thinktank Unlock Democracy last night, Mr Blunkett said the credit crunch provided an opportunity to increase political participation.
“The voice of the people, the clear relevance of political intervention and the role of government across the world has been reasserted,” Mr Blunkett said.
“Now is the moment to reinforce the importance of participative political decision-making. In
other words, to put the needs of the people before corporate and financial greed.”
He combated any accusation that MPs fail to listen to their constituencies, claiming he does listen very intently; but democracy is not only about “what people want, but crucially, what they are prepared to do for it”.
He argued the government’s activities have been made more transparent, and therefore more faith should be reinstated into politics.
Elected officials should “win on the basis of real fervour for change, rather than convincing the people [the government] are really not all that bad.”
The former home secretary accepted the judiciary’s right to challenge the executive, but said the rule of law does not mean the judiciary can somehow supersede politics.
During his tenure in Cabinet, judges objected to public criticisms of their decisions from the Home Office.
“People turn to the law when they should turn to politics,” he argued.
