Dining across the divide: ‘He thinks politicians should be paid more – I think they should be paid less!’
Adam, 35, Blackpool
Occupation Accountant
Voting record Conservative. Describes himself as centre right
Amuse bouche Adam was Henry VIII in a school play. “I just stood there looking stern with my arms folded while my wives sang and danced around me. A couple of them did get beheaded, yes”
Rachel, 55, Liverpool
Occupation University lecturer
Voting record Most recently, Labour. “Because I like my MP, not the party.” Describes herself as a socialist
Amuse bouche Once, camping in the Australian outback, Rachel pooed on a scorpion. “I had a torch, and I saw this poor scorpion looking at me, like, ‘Why?’”
For starters
Adam We both had the chicken liver parfait. Then I had a lamb shank, Rachel had pork fillet. She seemed a very nice lady; we are both pretty down-to-earth.
Rachel We were both confused by the chutney. I like that: there’s nothing more grounding than people not knowing what to do in fancy places. I was really relieved, it was comfortable. Then I thought, “It’s too comfortable, I’m going to have to make an effort to argue about something.”
The big beef
Adam We’re both disappointed by what’s offered by current politicians: she’s disillusioned with Labour, I’m disillusioned with the Conservatives. But how do we change the system to encourage people we would find more relatable into politics? My suggestion was maybe we should be treating jobs in politics more like proper jobs and paying higher wages. It seems crazy that you could be working in a general job in London with nowhere near the same responsibilities as the prime minister, but earning more money. The kind of people becoming MPs are already quite wealthy, successful; it’s like a hobby rather than an actual job.
Rachel I think they should be paid less! Half the problem with politics currently is it is a career path: people going into it to make money, make contacts, get into business. I think people should be going into politics to make a difference in the world and in communities. I’m not saying they should be living on a pittance, but I don’t think what should entice them in is huge salaries. I say the same about trade union leaders: there’s an argument that they should be earning the average salary.
Adam If MPs were paid more, they wouldn’t feel as if they have to have a second job. Change things so they actually can’t, with rules about gifts, bribery and lobbying. A £90,000 salary is a lot of money, but compared with other jobs in the City, it doesn’t feel very competitive.
Rachel I think it should be their only job. And I don’t think Farage is going to go hungry if he doesn’t do his little Cameos. Adam felt that one of the most major things you can do is manage the country, and it was similar to managing a business. But for me it has to have more motivation than career prospects and income.
Sharing plate
Adam We agreed that Elon Musk is, for lack of a better word, a bit of a knob. A powerful, rich individual trying to sway politics not only in the US, but in the UK too.
Rachel Musk should butt out – of everything. Adam and I both want more hope within politics. We both come from a working-class background; we just approach concerns about cost of living, decent wages, in different ways.
For afters
Adam She’s not a fan of cyclists and thinks they should pay a road tax.
Rachel I do get irritated at cyclists going through red lights. But none of us pays road tax. It’s vehicle excise duty, and cyclists don’t pay because they’re not polluting the planet. But there should be some contribution.
Adam Potholes are caused by cars, not cyclists. It’s a green form of travel that we should encourage. And I don’t even know how we would enforce a road tax on cyclists: what about kids on bikes? I’m not a cyclist, I drive everywhere.
Takeaways
Rachel You make assumptions about people’s politics; I expected him to be a bit more brash – he wasn’t at all. I think half the reason it wasn’t quite as shouty, or we didn’t argue as forcefully as we might have done, was that we recognised a similar class experience in each other.
Adam Even though we might disagree on political points, the overriding thing was that we were normal people with similar backgrounds and common sense. I think it ended well: we sort of waved each other off. I asked her if she wanted to exchange details; she said no.
Additional reporting: Kitty Drake
• Adam and Rachel ate at The Grand in Southport, thegrand.co.uk
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