How Westminster Works...and Why It Doesn't

By: Ian Dunt

Narrated by: Ian Dunt

Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

Features and Audio exclusive interview with Dorian Lynskey

British politics is broken.

Anyone sitting down to watch the news will get the sense that something has gone terribly wrong. We have prime ministers who detonate the economy, secretaries of state who are intellectually incapable of doing the job and MPs who seem temperamentally unsuited to the role. Expertise is denigrated. Lies are rewarded. And deep-seated, long-lasting national problems go permanently unresolved. Most of us have a sense that the system doesn't work, but we struggle to articulate exactly why. Our political and financial system is cloaked in secrecy, archaic terminology, ancient custom and impenetrable technical jargon.

Lifting the lid on British politics, How Westminster Works...and Why It Doesn't exposes every aspect of the system in a way that can be understood and challenged, from the heights of Downing Street to the depths of the nation's newsrooms, from the hallways of the civil service to the green benches of the Commons.

Based on interviews with some of the leading voices in politics, from former occupants of No.10 to key figures in Whitehall, Westminster and Fleet Street, Ian Dunt provides exactly what people in power have always tried to avoid: a full description of the mechanisms of British government. And a vision of how we can fix it.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 Ian Dunt (P)2023 Orion Publishing Group Limited

Critic reviews

"In clear, reasonable tones Ian Dunt lays out why we should all be bloody furious at how badly British politics serves us. Parliament, parties, the media, the civil service and the law are all shatteringly exposed as rusted vehicles of inactivity, where long-term thinking is a dirty idea. How Westminster Works is both an articulate wail of lament and a rousing call to arms" (ARMANDO IANNUCCI)

"With typical incision, wit and flair, Ian Dunt masterfully deconstructs and skewers our corrosive political culture. An indispensable analysis of how we got into this mess" (THE SECRET BARRISTER)

"A devastating diagnosis of how Britain's political engine has broken down. Everyone in Westminster should read it"(OLIVER BULLOUGH)

The Master of British Politics

Wow Ians insight is brilliant the trouble is we the majority keep voting in the dumbest so we need him to keep us from going over the edge which is very close.......keep it up....

Engaging, depressing, but hopeful

UK politics in recent years has been thoroughly depressing and now I understand why - with a few small exceptions, Westminster is broken from the ground up.

A highly engaging listen of the structural failings of our political system.

While recounting the events of UK withdrawal from Afghanistan, Dunt lays bare some of the dysfunction that is rife in our elected leaders..

To be honest, some of this made me angry. Some of it is just sad. Thankfully there are some bright spots and Dunt does offer some solutions. We can change this situation - but will we? Will we reject culture wars and raise our voices to demand reforms? Perhaps, only if more people read “How Westminster Works… and Why It Doesn’t” by Ian Dunt.

Erudite, articulate, two thumbs up

Excellent overview with erudite level insight, context and suggestions. A must-read to understand the political dysfunction.