Boris Johnson for Prime Minister?

by Rosie Bell and Siena Hocking

(source: Wiki Commons)

Boris Johnson, as many know, is the current mayor of London and well known for his flamboyant and pompous personality. Could this well-known man be the next leader of our government?

He has certainly had an extremely colourful career after having graduated from Oxford university he went on to become a management consultant before leaving this job after finding it tiresome; he then moved onto journalism writing many outstanding articles, causing many to compare him to Winston Churchill. He soon joined the Conservative party and moved his way up through the ranks and was appointed to the front bench. 

However after having been demoted due to scandal he left the House of Commons and ran for Mayor of London, where he is currently sitting in his second term. Having recently stated that he will make his return to the House of Commons by running for MP of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, many have questioned whether this could be the stepping stone to leading the UK.

There is no doubt that Boris is popular among the people; a recent ComRes poll showed that he was the favourite politician, beating all other major politicians such as David Cameron, Nigel Farage and Ed Miliband. Many have called him a conspicuous politician when he was on the bench having heard saying: "The Lib Dems are not just empty. They are a void within a vacuum surrounded by a vast inanition." He is an anomaly in the perception of other bland, by-the-book politicians, largely due to his buffoonis personality which was demonstrated when he hilariously dangled like a child on a zip wire during the flurry of the successful London 2012 Olympic Games. His image is somewhat contrasted by his enviable way with words, allowing him to deliver inspiring, intellectual, ingenious speeches with an innovative flare following the 2012 legacy ‘inspire a generation’.

Secondly Boris is a Eurosceptic, believing that if the UK were to leave the EU then the economy would be able to grow further due to the leakages of money from the economy especially from the large transfer payments and bail outs UK have rendered to the EU. Talking about this topic he was quoted as saying: “First they make us pay in our taxes for Greek olive groves, many of which probably don’t exist. Then they say we can’t dip our bread in olive oil in restaurants. We didn’t join the Common Market – betraying the New Zealanders and their butter – in order to be told when, where and how we must eat the olive oil we have been forced to subsidise.” However many believe that leaving the EU would have adverse effects on the UK as this could disrupt trading between the countries within the EU which today is our largest export customer. Being a part of the EU also establishes large capital investment into the country by foreign companies which is a huge contributor to the employment of many regional areas therefore the national income of a country.

Many look at Boris and see his persona rather than his brilliance. It is undeniable that in his two terms of Mayor of London he has made a difference within the capital which is currently going through a glowing period through the introduction and successfulness of his affordable homes scheme, the Routemaster bus and many more small but worthy schemes. It’s not just his achievements for the city as a whole but the small sometimes considered insufficient, neglected schemes he has backed such as when he got behind a local group of skateboarders to save their local, historic skateboarding site the Undercroft at Southbank.

Many people cannot get over his appearance and this brings about the question as to how is he meant to be taken seriously in leading our country, especially when he comes up against foreign leaders. 

He came under much scrutiny when the 2011 riots broke out over London as he was vacationing in Canada for these days and was said to have refused to come back, even though many had predicted that there was something brewing, which therefore calls into question whether he is ready and able to handle the job of leading a country as he couldn’t cope with the pressure of helping the capital through their difficult time.

Many question whether he will be able to fulfil his obligations in Parliament successfully as he will remain mayor of London until 2016 and would he be able to do one without neglecting the other? Should he be allowed a second chance?

So has Boris got what it takes to be a leader and would he be able to guide the country in maintaining or even increasing the current growth of the country? Many question his initiative and innovative ideas and whether he is capable of giving this country something new as he did a spurt of life into London.  Would he have your vote?