H E L E N C H A N D L E R – W I L D E
In today’s Saturday Q&A I chat to Helen Chandler-Wilde, Councillor for Henley Town Council and an undergraduate at UCL, about Beyoncé, feminism, and young people in politics!
“I’m pretty self-motivated (ruthless), so if anyone has said anything negative I haven’t been listening…”
Dream job: Editor of The Times
Who inspires you: I harp on about Helena Morrissey- what she did at the Boat Race was incredible. And Serena Williams receives so much flak for her (fabulous) appearance and manages somehow to block it all out and just focus on being one of the best athletes the world’s seen!
The best advice you’ve been given: blue and green must never be seen
Celebrity crush: So predictable- Beyoncé. Always.
Biggest cringe: People saying ‘expresso’ instead of ‘espresso’.
Favourite film or series? I am currently watching Arrested Development (it’s on Netflix) with my boyfriend, which is the first US comedy series I’ve seen that actually makes me laugh. It doesn’t seem properly American! My favourite film is Clueless, which needs no further explanation
Favourite food? I don’t have one but do drink gallons of tea!
Why conservatives? I would rather teach a man to fish than keep him enslaved and dependent on the state for handouts.
What causes are you most passionate about? The environment, education and gender equality.
Are you part of any societies at University? Throughout my studies I’ve done sports: rowing, lacrosse and rugby. I am also the President of the Conservative Society this year.
Have you found people at university to be more engaged in politics compared to at school? Yes, although I think that’s just because now we’re older and most of my friends from university I met through student politics.
What affect has university had on your political stand point? The students’ union at my university is completely crap. It is the most illiberal organisation I’ve ever encountered. It bans books, music and certain lines of thought and insists everyone hold the same set of values as the miniscule proportion of the student body that runs it. It’s as though they read 1984 and thought ‘hey, that’s a good idea!’ It makes me much more invigorated to fight for my liberal ideals.
Why do you think so many young people are turned off by politics? I wish I knew.
How important is it that young people get involved with politics? ‘Getting involved’ can be anything: even something as simple as voting. The patriotic pride I felt the moment the polls shut on the 7th May was overwhelming- you look around the world and see numerous countries where the quality of life of citizens is awful because their systems of government are broken and corrupt. I feel so much pride and gratitude that as a community we are able to work together so well that one party accepts defeat instead of purging people to get back in. Voting is the only way to support this amazing system that keeps our country going.
How do you think social media has influenced young people engagement with politics? Technological revolutions have increased the dispersion of political messages for almost a hundred years; first Roosevelt was broadcasting fireside chats on the radio, then Truman took to television, now we have US presidential candidates announcing their nominations on YouTube. What is different this time however, is that people watching can share their thoughts instantly. I think people like to feel they can join in, so perhaps this is making more people interested in politics.
With today’s obsession with photographs and social media how hard is it to have a normal social life while keeping a professional presentation? Make your Facebook private and don’t tweet anything you’ll regret! Very simple!
Do you use social media for networking or just privately? I am a big fan of LinkedIn, which I only use professionally. Facebook is also greatly useful in staying connected to people you meet, which means that you can turn someone you met once at a party into someone who could give you a job.
Top 3 inspirational women in politics: Very difficult to answer, but it has to be Theresa May, Isabel Hardman and the late Baroness Thatcher. All extremely talented, hardworking and the best in their field.
What is it like to be a young female in politics? It’s very difficult sometimes. Often you look around a room of 50 people and realise you’re one of three women. It’s can be an unnatural atmosphere. Having said that, there are many schemes to combat that so there is some effort going in to improving the balance.
What are the issues you would most like to tackle regarding women in today’s society? Equal pay and equal education: once women feel equally valued and are financially independent then everything gets easier.
When did you start seeing politics as a potential career option? I wouldn’t say I have a ‘career’ at the moment- so everything is still a potential! Around the 2010 election I started to get really nerdy about politics, and I joined the party when I was 15. I felt inspired by the titanic differences in philosophy that I saw played out in the media.
Have you found people encouraging or has anyone questioned this career path? I haven’t really chosen a career path as such. I’m pretty self-motivated (ruthless), so if anyone has said anything negative I haven’t been listening…
How do you think being bought up in Henley has impacted your political views? I am definitely much more aware of the importance of protecting the natural environment. Henley is really, really pretty (come and visit!) in both its historic centre and gorgeous countryside setting. When you have lived somewhere like that, the idea of freeing up greenbelt land for development becomes really frightening.
What do you think are the most crucial changes that the current conservative government is making? It’s boring, but balancing the books. Although it’s easy and lazy to categorise austerity as harsh, but it’s better to have a small cuts in government services for a few years than a completely unstable future with no services whatsoever.
If you were prime minister what would you change for young people? I would continue improving the economy so young people can feel safe knowing there will be a job available for them when they leave school. I would also make eight weeks of work experience compulsory before you leave school. You can’t walk into your dream job without experience.
What would you aim to address regarding young people with disabilities? I have very little knowledge on this area, so forgive me! It’s difficult to put myself into that situation, but I would imagine I would like to have as equal access to employment as I could. Being left out of jobs for something completely irrelevant would be incredibly demoralising.
What would you aim to address regarding young people and benefits? I think that if you’re in a period where you’re receiving unemployment benefit it’s extremely beneficial for you to be spending that time doing voluntary work. It will help keep you in the working routine and build self-confidence.
How would you recommend young people find out about the different parties in a fun and engaging way? There are loads of political blogs, but most of them are extremely boring. I would recommend podcasts- you can listen to them whilst doing something else. Radio 4 have loads, as do most newspapers.
How important do you think the creative industries are to society and would you prioritise the arts? The Arts are very important to Britain’s society, economy and place in the world; look at how popular British music, films and art are across the globe. The artistic world accordingly receives high government subsidies to encourage their work. I think that’s probably right, but where these subsidies are going to should be reviewed to make sure we’re encouraging mass art participation, not just participation by a few elite individuals who actually hold a view on Tracey Emin.
What are good characteristics for a politician? Honesty, leadership and intelligence. Lots of politicians are not experts in their policy field, which is worrying. That’s why the second chamber of the House of Lords is vital, it’s a way that doctors can judge the plans for the NHS, or finance experts for the economy.
A huge proportion of the top politicians are from private schools and may not have any real experience of how the lower classes live, this often stops the general public taking their views seriously. What do you think needs to be addressed or changed so that there is a more varied background in politics? I completely agree that everyone in politics will fair much better if they’ve experienced a range of things, whether that is living conditions and industries. Having an experience of struggling to make ends meet is part of that, whether that’s having to work twenty hours a week whilst studying full-time to cope with London living costs or having to cope with the needs of a new baby. It’s not normal to sail through life on cash from your parents.
It’s also true that the traditional supporter of working people- the Labour Party- is now filled with Oxford-educated heirs with two kitchens whose only experience of the ‘real world’ is teaching politics at an Ivy-League university. I heard something very pertinent the other day:
‘The Labour Party is a group of rich people convincing poor people to vote for rich people by telling them that the reason they’re poor is other rich people’.
You look at those who are supposedly on the side of the less well-off: Russell Brand, Owen Jones, Polly Toynbee, and see that they have decided to hoard their millions of pounds instead of donate them to charity. Those are the people who have no idea of the real world. I would much rather listen to the best working class revolutionary we’ve seen this century: a hardworking shopkeeper’s daughter from Grantham.
What was your own like experience in school and how would you improve them? I loved my time at school. I think single-sex education is extremely important and should not be confined to history in favour for ‘modernisation’. Girls do better in single-sex schools and are able to grow up not crippled by the pressure of having to act a part to please the boys. My school gives bursaries so that any girl bright enough can attend. That seems like the ideal model for education: unburdened by unnecessary regulation from the state my teachers could actually teach, and parents pay what they can afford.
I firmly believe in a traditional curriculum with lots of extra-curricular activities. I think that free schools are a really great idea, especially looking at places like the West London Free School.
What advice would you give to a young person with a passion for politics but who feels intimidated? You don’t have to work in politics to be interested in it. I say start reading a quality newspaper a few times a week, listen to some good podcasts and read a couple of introductory books on political philosophy. The fundamental principles on which the different parties rest are the interesting bit. Then ring me up, and I’ll take you out campaigning so you can see it in action!
