An end to instability, Crawley Observer Column, Wednesday 20th May 2026

If anyone has spoken for Britain over the last decade, it must be Brenda from Bristol, who when informed by the BBC of the 2017 snap General Election, remarked: “You’re joking!, Not another one! Oh for god’s sake, I can’t stand this, there is too much politics going on!”

I get what she means. For too long it has felt like no matter how much we want to get on with our own lives, politics gets in the way. It’s not an illusion, when I speak with school classes, I have to remind myself the world I grew up in was very different.

The ‘Peace Dividend’ from ending the Cold War allowed public money to go from Defence to public services and lower taxes, while we experienced the longest period of sustained economic growth since records began. Life wasn’t perfect, but we had good reason to believe the country and our lives would improve year-on-year.

Then Judgement Day came. The economic boom, sustained by risky lending practices, came to a sudden halt and governments had to choose between another Great Depression or propping the banks up. They chose the latter, but as a global leader for financial services, the cost of doing so—added to by COVID-19, has left the UK highly vulnerable to the bond market while economic growth—further hampered by Austerity and Brexit—never recovered. Where there’s economic instability next comes political instability.

People want things to improve. They want stability. When I called for Keir to set out a timetable for his departure in February, it was already clear there would be a leadership challenge in May and I wanted to ensure an orderly transition.

You don’t take these decisions lightly, it’s not just a matter of current polling. To return to stability and rising living standards we need a leader with a clear vision for the country, who is prepared to make brave choices, and avoid constant u-turns. For that to happen, I believe we need a change of Prime Minister and in pushing for change I have sought to act in the national interest.