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10: Questions: Oliver Letwin – Conservative MP (UK)

posted by Salla Sorri at 8h45 GMT on Aug 28
oliverletwinsmall.bmp

Who rules the world?
No one does and that’s really as it should be. What we need to make sure of is that there are many different people doing many different things, and as far as possible ruling themselves.

Who would you vote for a president of the world?
No one. I think it’s a terrible idea to have a president of the world, it’s difficult enough trying to run a country let alone the world.

Can terrorism destroy democracy?

If we let it, and we musn’t.

Why bother to vote?
Voting matters because it effects who the government is and who the government is effects all of our lives: our schools, our hospitals, the crime we do or do not see on our streets, how wealthy we are. And therefore people have a real reason to vote, our challenge as politicians is to make them realise that.

Are women more democratic than men?

This is the kind of question I think is almost without meaning. Some women are very democratically inclined, some men are very democratically inclined, some women are less democratically inclined and some men are less democratically inclined. I have never done a survey one way or the other which would prove what the average was in either case.


Is God democratic?

I’m not a believer.

Is democracy good for everyone?
Democracy is the best system of government that human beings have invented, but that doesn’t mean it’s perfect.

What would make you start a revolution?

Just about nothing. I look at history and at the revolution there have been mostly with good intentions, mostly with catastrophic effects. Gradual change usually brings about better results than very sudden change.

Are dictators ever good?

I suppose it’s possible to imagine a dictator who sets out with good intentions. The problem is that Acton was right when said absolute power tends to grow up to absolutely, dictators tend to become, if they aren’t already very bad, very bad indeed as they go on.

Can democracy solve climate change?

I hope so, we need to; the jury’s out and there’s a lot of work to be done and my party and I in particular am try awfully hard to prove that democracy can reduce carbon emissions and protect us from the worst effects of climate change.

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