Dining across the divide: ‘He agreed that Conservative election policies are a bit desperate and Labour is playing too safe’
Matt, 24, Southampton
Occupation Medical student
Voting record Labour in the last general election and Green in one local election. Describes himself as “fairly leftwing”
Amuse bouche Matt used to sing in a choir and got to grade 6 singing, but when his voice broke the gift left him
Ian, 72, Southampton
Occupation Solicitor
Voting record Conservative, and a “moderate” party member. “I’m not joining Nigel Farage – I regard him as about as attractive a proposition as Jeremy Corbyn”
Amuse bouche Ian reads the Guardian: “It’s good to have your own views challenged by alternative ones”
For starters
Ian It was a Spanish tapas restaurant. I had an aubergine starter followed by sea bass. We both had soft drinks. He’s only 24; we had a bit of a laugh about the fact he wasn’t old enough to vote in the Brexit referendum.
Matt Friendly staff, really good food. I had a pork belly starter and chicken with chorizo for mains. We got to know each other a bit, establishing our backgrounds. I wore jeans and a jumper; he was in a nice evening jacket. He’s clearly had a very established career as a solicitor, different from my background in public services.
The big beef
Ian Doctors should not be striking, for two reasons. One is that I don’t actually think junior doctors’ rate of pay is particularly low. As well as the amount of time they spend qualifying, when you take into account that they have good prospects and good pensions, I think their pay is roughly about right. Any future government should consider making it unlawful for doctors to strike in the same way that it’s unlawful for police officers.
Related: Dining across the divide: ‘I think killing animals and eating them is fine. He doesn’t’
Matt Striking is a last resort. But we’re losing staff to Australia, Ireland and Europe, Canada and New Zealand. It’s not all about pay; it’s about working conditions and patient safety. We’ve got doctors who are burnt out and tired. And that’s not good for patient safety, obviously.
Ian More important than the pay, the danger that it can cause to patients and the NHS is such that they should not strike. Any strike lengthens waiting lists, which causes people to suffer for longer than necessary, and inevitably some will die.
Matt That is a valid point. I think the BMA has tried to mitigate that. My argument is that this is about short-term pain in terms of waiting lists. And this will have long-term benefits in terms of patient safety as well as doctor morale and pay.
Sharing plate
Ian There were lots of areas where we were broadly in agreement. He wasn’t sticking to half-baked opinions of someone very young. I don’t think I was sticking to dogmatic opinions that many old people might hold. We were disappointed that both the main parties are making immigration a central plank of the election campaign.
Matt He agreed that the Conservative election policies are a bit desperate and that Labour is playing too safe. We agreed there was a need for more of a long-term plan and a vision.
For afters
Ian I voted remain, but have since formed the view that Brexit is a good thing. I acknowledge that there are economic disadvantages, and we are slightly worse off now than we would be had Brexit not taken place. My argument is more to do with sovereignty and being able to make our own decisions. I’m happy to be out.
Matt If I’d been old enough, I would have voted remain, for reasons like the ability to study abroad. Now, working in the health service, I see how the economic effects of Brexit have really affected lives. People are worse off financially. They aren’t getting their medications because there are shortages. We don’t have access to a lot of the EU research bodies that provide really important data on things like antibiotic resistance.
Takeaway
Ian Matt is likable, reasonable and articulate. We did end up exchanging email addresses – we might fix another lunch to continue the discussion.
Matt If you sit down with someone and have a proper conversation, division doesn’t exist to the same extent. Also generational differences: it annoys me when newspaper articles say millennials do that and boomers do this – it sows divides that don’t exist. Ian and I managed to find a lot of common ground.
Additional reporting: Kitty Drake
• Ian and Matt ate at La Regata in Southampton.
Want to meet someone from across the divide? Find out how to take part
