2 year Prime Ministers - the norm?

[Mojooo]

So it looks recent PMs cannot dominate their MPs - and these days there is intense media attention on every little thing which eventually leads to a 'PM must resign' narrative with every bloody thing.

Does that mean that all future PMs are only going to last a couple of years at the most?

Was it better when we didn't have such connected medias and basically most people couldn't be arsed/felt detached from politics?

Whilst it may be good that wrong decisions lead to sackings, its hardly good for stability. It also creates an environment where Politicians and the media know they can get a PM out with enough pressure - this will be our 4th out in the same way in the last 10 years.

[Vanden Saab]

Out of the 60 PMs we have had less than half have lasted for 4 years and a quarter have lasted less than 2 years. 6 have died in office and 11 resigned due to illness. 2/3rds have resigned or been defeated at an election.

Edited by Vanden Saab on Sunday 8th February 05:46

[DrDeAtH]

2 year Keir?

[cheesejunkie]

Unfortunately you might have a point. The knives will be out pretty much as soon as any PM enters office. The media likes a scalp, especially if it's a labour one.

Mind you I'd far prefer that to the US attitude of nothing to see here when discussing Trump's latest fk up.

I don't like it. I think MPs should be given time to enact policies even if I don't like the policy. As VS mentions it's fairly rare in our recent system for a PM to win an election and get voted out in another one.

Maybe Labour are getting a fondness for regicide as rabid as the Tory's lust for it. I can't see it, different rules for a start, but as mentioned on another post I do think the man's days are numbered and we will have a different PM at the next election.

[Rumdoodle]

France is getting through them at an even faster rate than the UK.

[Wills2]

Since Brexit yes it's the norm, it's almost like we've made the country ungovernable and each PM is presented with a Gordian knot to untie.


(no doubt some reform supporter will point out that France is a similar position which apparently makes it OK)

[steveatesh]

Wills2 said:

Since Brexit yes it's the norm, it's almost like we've made the country ungovernable and each PM is presented with a Gordian knot to untie.


(no doubt some reform supporter will point out that France is a similar position which apparently makes it OK)

Thank god the pandemic had zero affect on the UK, nor the energy shock from the Russian attack on Ukraine. It would have been a lot worse if they had!

[Randy Winkman]

One thing that I think is clear is that people use whatever is the current issue of concern to try to get rid of the person they didn't like and wanted rid of in the first place. But that's probably always been the case.

[tim0409]

cheesejunkie said:

The media likes a scalp, especially if it's a labour one.

Back on planet Earth, I don’t recall the media going easy on Johnson or Truss, or Rishi Sunak for that matter. If you genuinely think the media are biased against Labour you need to lie down in a dark room and hopefully gain a bit of perspective.

[Mr Penguin]

Yes, although it is worth remembering that no PM in history has been kicked out by their party in their first term after becoming PM by general election.

[cheesejunkie]

tim0409 said:

Back on planet Earth, I don t recall the media going easy on Johnson or Truss, or Rishi Sunak for that matter. If you genuinely think the media are biased against Labour you need to lie down in a dark room and hopefully gain a bit of perspective.

No, I don't.

I could do a comedy list of Telegraph anti Labour headlines but it wouldn't burst your bubble.

[Iamnotkloot]

cheesejunkie said:

tim0409 said:

Back on planet Earth, I don t recall the media going easy on Johnson or Truss, or Rishi Sunak for that matter. If you genuinely think the media are biased against Labour you need to lie down in a dark room and hopefully gain a bit of perspective.

No, I don't.

I could do a comedy list of Telegraph anti Labour headlines but it wouldn't burst your bubble.

Eh? So what? The DT is well known as well right of centre so that’s hardly revelatory.

I could do a list from The Guardian of anti-Tory headlines but that’s pointless too.

[Vanden Saab]

Mr Penguin said:

Yes, although it is worth remembering that no PM in history has been kicked out by their party in their first term after becoming PM by general election.

Ahem, Boris...

[alangla]

Short terms aren’t that uncommon, if anything Johnson and May lasted reasonably well, Thatcher, Blair and, to an extent, Cameron & Major were unusually long serving, so one could suggest it’s actually the long serving ones that are unusual https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prime_minist...

[Mr Penguin]

alangla said:

Short terms aren t that uncommon, if anything Johnson and May lasted reasonably well, Thatcher, Blair and, to an extent, Cameron & Major were unusually long serving, so one could suggest it s actually the long serving ones that are unusual https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prime_minist...

Look at the ones who lasted more than 7 years in a single stint - nine in total, five before 200 years ago, two more before the first world war, only Blair and Thatcher since then.

[Sway]

Vanden Saab said:

Mr Penguin said:

Yes, although it is worth remembering that no PM in history has been kicked out by their party in their first term after becoming PM by general election.

Ahem, Boris...

Didn't he technically resign? And he didn't become PM by general election, he became PM then called one.

[alangla]

Mr Penguin said:

alangla said:

Short terms aren t that uncommon, if anything Johnson and May lasted reasonably well, Thatcher, Blair and, to an extent, Cameron & Major were unusually long serving, so one could suggest it s actually the long serving ones that are unusual https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prime_minist...

Look at the ones who lasted more than 7 years in a single stint - nine in total, five before 200 years ago, two more before the first world war, only Blair and Thatcher since then.

True, there were some very long serving ones if you dig back in history, I’d only looked at the time since around the First World War. I’d also used 6 years rather than 7 as my cutoff, I guess it’s fairly arbitrary. Worth saying that MacMillan was within 3 months of the 7 years, but I guess the overall point is that sub 2 year terms aren’t massively unusual in history. I think we can agree that Thatcher and Blair are unusual in the last 200 years. Will we see someone serve as long, or longer, than those two again?

[a_dreamer]

Most our politicians seem to be power crazed idiots, who will bend and flex their political position for money and progression. Brexit showed it. Some picked sides ignoring their own beliefs or those of their constituents on what it could do for their career.

A large labour win and others in the party see the opportunity to be pm just by dumping on Starmer at every opportunity

Perhaps the large pay day, great ongoing salary post leaving office and the chance to make st loads of money from companies post office makes them out for blood at every opportunity.

Country is on its arse and elections are purely now about what colour tie you want the person who lies and robs from you to wear

[S600BSB]

Political instability and economic damage caused initially by Brexit and then made worse by Covid and a war in Europe. Tough times.

[768]

Wills2 said:

Since Brexit yes it's the norm, it's almost like we've made the country ungovernable and each PM is presented with a Gordian knot to untie.


(no doubt some reform supporter will point out that France is a similar position which apparently makes it OK)

Alternatively, since Brexit the buck stops with the PM and they're suddenly finding the blade of accountability now hangs above them.

The rot needed cutting out and it's not done yet.