Verity Ryan cites Leading People research in a Telegraph comment piece on politicians’ advisers’ backgrounds

It’s almost routine to complain that every general election brings to Parliament a new crop of MPs straight from the pages of the Oxford and Cambridge University year books. Many people worry that we are governed by a homogenous Oxbridge elite who look and talk and think alike.

What often gets overlooked but is just as important to consider is the profile of people behind the stage of the House of Commons – the researchers and adviser who brief and support our politicians. Unfortunately, they are a mirror image of their employers. That’s a missed opportunity for introducing a more diverse set of experiences into Parliament.

According to the Sutton Trust, a charity that studies social mobility, more than a quarter of MPs attended Oxford or Cambridge and 28 per cent graduated from Russell Group universities.

Read the full piece here

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