Philip Cowley Journalist Profile

Articles

The Professor Will See You Now: Who Voters Don't Like

2 weeks ago | politicshome.com | Zoe Crowther |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: voter preferences Fellow lecturer to me, after a Question Time-style event: “What did you think of that?” Me: “It was all right, but didn’t that dreadful woman remind you why you don’t vote Lib Dem?” Him: “That’s my wife.” It may have been years ago, but the embarrassment still lingers.
The Professor Will See You Now: Canvassing

1 month ago | politicshome.com | Sophie Church |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: canvassing Professor David Denver, who died in August last year, began his book Elections and Voting Behaviour in Britain with the words: “Elections are fun”.
The Professor Will See You Now: Trust

2 months ago | politicshome.com | Sophie Church |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: trust The latest data on trust in professions makes salutary reading for the political class. In the most recent Ipsos poll, for example, just 18 per cent of people said they trusted politicians to tell the truth. Of the 26 professions about which the survey asked, politicians come bottom. Actually, that is a sleight of hand.
The Professor Will See You Now: Bats

2 months ago | politicshome.com | Matilda Martin |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: bats Do you remember the ‘Vote Labour and the bats get it’ part of the election campaign? I missed it, which is curious, because bats are a big deal at Cowley Towers.
The professor will see you now - majority envy

Feb 9, 2025 | politicshome.com | Tali Fraser |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: majority envy “We’ve got a massive majority.” At least that’s what I heard the Prime Minister say at PMQs on 22 January – although for some reason Hansard records it as “we have massive [sic] majority”. But how massive?
The professor will see you now - democratic realism

Jan 30, 2025 | politicshome.com | Matilda Martin |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: democratic realism We know a lot about what voters think of MPs. Much of it is not very positive. But what do MPs think of voters?
The professor will see you now: votes at 16

Jan 20, 2025 | politicshome.com | Matilda Martin |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: votes at 16 Two decades ago, in his book on voter turnout, Mark Franklin argued that 18 was about the worst possible age to first give people the vote. It’s a transitional time in many lives, between school and the responsibilities of adulthood.
Assisted Dying: how MPs voted and what it tells us about ‘cross-party consensus’

Dec 2, 2024 | theconversation.com | Philip Cowley

Whenever there is a high-profile free vote – like that over assisted dying – you will see claims that it cuts across party lines: that the issues involved are “non-party”, “cross-party”, or “not issues of party politics”. This is all partly true, although it also reflects an anti-party sentiment that has long existed. At the beginning of the 20th century, writer Sidney Low noted that the easiest way to get a round of applause at a public meeting was to claim that something was non-partisan.
The Professor Will See You Now: Whatever

Nov 28, 2024 | politicshome.com | Chaminda Jayanetti |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: whatever Almost exactly 100 years ago, in October 1924, the spinal specialist Clement Jeffrey gave a lecture at Mortimer Hall on the subject of “nerves”. He advised his audience to avoid talking about politics before going to bed.
The Professor Will See You Now: newbies

Nov 7, 2024 | politicshome.com | Zoe Crowther |Philip Cowley

4 min read In an occasional series, Professor Philip Cowley offers a political science lesson for The House’s readers. This week: newbies The day before my wedding, en route with my wife-to-be to a wedding rehearsal and running well behind schedule, I stopped to take a photo of a street sign. “I say, darling, would you mind telling me what you are doing?” she asked (or something like that, I may not have got the precise words correct). “It’s Milk Street,” I replied.