“The next station is Westminster,” the automated voice of the London Underground announced. “Exit for the Palace of Westminster, and Houses of Parliament.”
I walked up the station’s stairs with three other Hillsdale College students, sophomore Porter Jihaad and juniors Jacob Fox and Vivian Turnbull. We left the station and stood facing the centuries-old facade of Westminster, throngs of tourists, and the center of the United Kingdom’s government.
The gothic architecture and towering spires shocked me. Here was the descendant of the government of the Magna Carta. Here was the government that sent colonists to North America. And here was my first day of work.
My colleagues and I had arrived in London for 10-week parliamentary internships arranged by the Margaret Thatcher Centre, a British nonprofit organization that traditionally sponsors American students from The Citadel college to intern for members of Parliament. This summer was the first time the Centre sponsored Hillsdale students.
We went to the office for a meeting and orientation of Westminster and Portcullis House, the building across from Westminster that houses most Members of Parliament’s offices. The Right Honorable Sir Conor Burns, Member of Parliament for Bournemouth West, whom I interned for, met us there in his office. This internship was my first time working for a government official, let alone one in another country, but Burns’ demeanor immediately set me at ease.
“No question is a stupid question,” he said.
A weight lifted off my shoulders, and I looked around his office. The only other staffer was Burns’ senior parliamentary assistant, a 21 year old who had worked for other members but started working for Burns on the same day we did.
Burns’ constituency, Bournemouth West, is a seaside town in Southern England. Constituencies in the United Kingdom each hold under 80,000 people, and 650 constituencies are represented in Parliament, although Members of Parliament don’t go to Westminster every day. Burns was regularly in his constituency of Bournemouth West from Wednesday evening until Sunday afternoon each week.
Burns would host “surgeries,” one-on-one meetings to address consistent complaints, and deliver surveys to thousands of constituents.
During my time working for Burns’, I noticed his connection to his constituency. He hand delivered surveys to each of his constituents and would take time to respond to all of them. He and his staff read every complaint about potholes, and every concern over rising taxes or illegal immigration from Afghanistan or Albania.
The people loved and appreciated Burns’ dedication. They volunteered to have him come and speak at their homes or to help him with his surveys.
Turnbull said her favorite part of the internship was constituency work.
“Most of the constituent work involved a lot of spreadsheets and data entry,” Turnbull said. “It might sound like a mundane task, but it’s neat to remember that these are real people and every email I enter or casework issue I flag means that someone’s life is touched, even in a small way. It is an honor to be a part of that communication.”
Fox said he liked having a first-person perspective on the United Kingdom’s legislative process.
“I enjoyed being able to spectate the legislative process in committee meetings in person,” Fox said.
Legislation aside, one of the most fascinating things about Parliament is the Prime Minister Questions, which happen once a week on Wednesdays.
“I enjoyed being able to have dinner on the House of Commons terrace overlooking the River Thames and watching Prime Minister Questions from the gallery,” Jihaad said.
During Prime Minister Questions, the public can walk into the viewing gallery of Parliament and see a packed House of Commons, with members of the Conservative and Labour parties sitting on separate sides of the floor.
The clock strikes noon, and Members of Parliament who have reserved question times are able to ask their questions to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Sunak, with his reputation, position, and potential weaknesses vulnerable, faces interrogation on every aspect of the government. He must be prepared for anything, ranging from questions about his “Stop the Boats” immigration campaign to jeers from members of his own party. Sunak has to defend his position to the awe — and entertainment — of everyone else.
Despite the aggression of Prime Minister Questions, I found the British government rarely debates social issues, which are at the forefront of American politics.
“I was surprised that the British view the intersection of social and political issues radically differently than we do,” Turnbull said. “For example, abortion isn’t really a political issue that’s ever talked about in the U.K., whereas most people in America have a pretty strong opinion one way or another.”
When not working in Parliament, we had the opportunity to travel around the United Kingdom and Europe. Jihaad went to Germany and Poland, while Turnbull and I took advantage of museums and historic sights in the United Kingdom, including nine military history museums in the space of 10 weeks. We also met up with some friends that were studying in Oxford for a whirlwind trip to Paris, where I walked 57,872 steps in 34 hours. My pedometer told me that I walked more steps than ever before.
“We made the most of the free museums around London on the weekends,” Turnbull said. “We also did several weekend trips — my favorite was to Bath — and I got plugged in with a Bible study at a local church.”
While the Tube made transportation convenient, my favorite trip to Chartwell, Winston Churchill’s house in Chelsea, involved a bit more than a metro ride.
My father had one rule for me while in London. He said I could take a plane, a boat, a bus, a cab, a train, a trolley — anything that I wanted. But he did not want me to “drive a stick shift on the wrong side of the road.” So Turnbull and I arrived at Chartwell after two lines on the London Underground, one train ride on the National Rail Service, a 40-minute bus ride, and a two-mile walk.
The house, built in 1848, is on an estate that William-the-Well built in 1382. Extensive gardens surround the estate including a well-kept rose garden, gifted to Winston Churchill and his wife, Clementine, for their wedding anniversary in 1958. Inside is a vast collection of awards and documents.
The docents were excited to point out all the things from America, but my favorite artifact was a draft of Winston Churchill’s Volume III of “The World Crisis,” his historical account of World War I. I did a project on the volume this past spring, and spent about five minutes trying to think of everything that changed between the draft and the completed version.
My first day in Parliament was “happy chaos.” Amid thousands of surveys, briefings, and press releases, one thing changed. I am now slightly addicted to earl grey tea.
