“People in this country have had enough of experts”, said Michael Gove, as he helped lead us out of the EU. “They would rather have people in charge of things who don’t have the first clue of what they are doing,” he didn’t add, but should have. With Sir Ivan Roberts leaving his job at the EU early, and Mark Carney quitting the Bank of England, the people may soon be granted their wishes.
If we are going to dispense with experts, we might as well appoint Jim Davidson as the new UK ambassador to the EU and Dominic Chappell, who led BHS to final ruin, take over at the Treasury. To be fair, Labour has already gone a fair way down this road by electing the woefully inexpert Jeremy Corbyn as leader and the loosest of loose cannons, Diane Abbott as shadow home secretary. For once, Labour is ahead of the game.
If we are going to rely on inexperts in public life, let’s do the same thing in everyday life too. For instance, if require delicate brain surgery, Mr Gove will probably advise against a skilled, expert brain surgeon. Perhaps the hospital chaplain might have a few spare moments to spare and conduct the operation himself? He’d at least have the benefit of God on his side. And so we really need to have someone who knows anything about nuclear fission when the French and Chinese governments start work on Hinkley B? The local Jobcentres are doubtless packed with feckless layabouts who could earn their benefits at the same time as providing power, if they don’t blow up the country first. Well, who needs experts?
Gove’s is the most absurd argument. Can you imagine telling Gasheads that Darrell Clarke is far too much of an expert at managing a football team and demanding that Bristol Rovers instead appoint someone utterly clueless? I thought the previous ownership regime had dispensed with expertise throughout their tenure in charge, but hey, what do I know? I’m not an expert.
Do we want to remove all aspects of expertise from society? Not only could we have clowns in charge of Brexit negotiations, we could have them at the heart of government. (What did you say? We already do? Oh.) Let’s have people building houses who don’t know anything about building houses, maths teachers who can’t add up, dentists who don’t know anything about teeth, gardeners who don’t know anything about plants. Think of any aspect of life and imagine it being carried out by the least suitable people you can find.
Pardon me, but I always thought we should be building a meritocratic society where graduates and skilled professionals combine to build a dynamic and prosperous society for all. Instead, a senior politician advises me that we should instead rely on inexperts. That bodes well for the future, doesn’t it?
