We are always being told how difficult the work of an MP is, and that the vast majority of them went into politics with the most honourable of intentions.

The problem comes when these honourable men and women choose to make politics a career.  At that point, all of those good intentions go out of the window.  It is at that point that they sell their souls to the whips and start planning their climb up the greasy pole (or should that be poll?).

Of course the worst offenders are the ones who opt for a career in politics before they've even left school.  What do they have to contribute?  How representative can they be of any constituency?  All they need to know is how to impress a selection panel, how to please the whips and ingratiate themselves with the party power brokers.

People who spend most of their time outside the Westminster bubble have a better connection with people and with reality as a whole. People who have proved themselves in business, engineering, medicine or any other field will have much more to offer than people who have never made anything, managed anything or sold anything other than themselves.

The easiest solution to this problem is to restrict the number of terms an MP can serve.  A single term would be ideal, but two or even three would be better than the current "job for life" aspiration.

People who know they will soon be returning to the real world will be far less dependent upon the Party, and as a result far less susceptible to the influence of the whips.

This arrangement would also have a beneficial effect on the current "gentleman's club" feel to Parliament.  With constant renewal, there would be less pressure to stick to convention and tradition, and more willingness to accept change.

The problem we have is that it is these very politicians who set the agenda.  Until that is addressed, there will be no significant change.