The whole notion of a ‘political class’ really irritates me. Journalists and politicians use it all the time as catch-all phrase to describe anyone who has a professional interest in politics. But calling it a ‘class’ is totally unnecessary and completely unhelpful.
The word ‘class’ connotes all sorts of dreadful ideas such as entitlement, dessert, inaccessibility and privilege. Of course, in many ways this is an accurate description of how power works in Britain today. But the problem is that by using this particular turn of phrase, the notion that politics is for the privileged few is simply reinforced.
Commentators could easily refer to people with professional involvement in politics as the political community. They don’t. They know that would make politics more accessible to what they view as the underclass.
Please excuse my rhetorical exaggerations.
