Politics is a People Business
Just over a month into life after leaving Parliament, and I’m enjoying Public Affairs, but it is different.
After just over four years working in the Palace of Westminster, you get used to a particular rhythm; the buzz of Portcullis House, the half-planned conversations in the rabbit warren of corridors that I used to take to vary up my route, the chance encounters that turn into something more useful a few weeks or months down the line. Leaving that behind, even for a role that keeps you firmly in the political world, takes a bit of recalibration.
Public affairs, like politics itself, is a people business.
That’s not a criticism of remote working, flexible hours, or the long-overdue push to improve work-life balance. All of that matters. Avoiding presenteeism matters. Letting people live further away from London matters. And video calls are, undeniably, efficient.
But efficiency isn’t everything. Relationships in politics are rarely built in formal settings alone.
They’re built over coffee that overruns, holding a freezing pint in the winter months outside one of Westminster’s famous drinking establishments, or a conversation that starts on one topic and drifts into something else entirely. Those moments create warmth and trust. They help you understand not just what someone thinks, but why they think it, what pressures they’re under, and where there might be space to work together.
That kind of connection is hard to replicate through a screen. Being on the Parliamentary Estate helps you build a political network, but it’s only the starting point. You still have to go out, show up, and be present. Events, receptions, roundtables, conferences, they are vital for how our democracy flows. It is not just about the House of Commons Chamber, or in my case, the Whips’ Office.
Every conversation adds another small piece of information to the picture. A passing comment, a shared frustration, a hint about what’s coming next. The old cliché holds true: knowledge is power, and knowledge is often accumulated informally.
Over the last month, as I’ve settled into public affairs, I’ve been reminded of this repeatedly. I’ve met with Liberal Democrat MPs I know well, Labour MPs and advisers I’m getting to know better, and made a conscious effort to get to more networking events and conferences to drum up new business.
None of these meetings, in isolation, are ground-breaking, however together, you collect information, you broaden your horizons, you cultivate relationships and insight you may be able to use in future conversations.
There is definitely a balance to be struck. Remote working has its place, and it has opened doors for people who might otherwise have been excluded. However politics doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and it doesn’t thrive on distance alone.
It happens in rooms, in conversations, and in the spaces in between the formal agenda. A month on, that’s the reality I’m settling into: fewer corridors, a lot more caffeine, and a renewed appreciation that in politics and public affairs, being there still matters.
