The Independent Group (TIG) gained 11 MPs in its first week. It may struggle to attract more, though – partly because these MPs don’t have any policies; partly because they’re discouraging people from joining:
https://twitter.com/johnshafthauer/status/1098538153848303618
With this in mind, there’s a push to get more celebrity backers. Following a sales pitch on the Andrew Marr Show, TIG has now snagged itself popular reality TV star David Brent:
This is the David Brent party.
“You’re not looking at the whole pie!”
“Can you give me five practical changes that you’ve actually made?” “I’ll give you three, and then another two if you need them. Effiency. Turnover. Profitability.”
pic.twitter.com/pm7GOhEEyp— Owen Jones (@owenjonesjourno) February 24, 2019
Celebs before plebs
Speaking about his foray into politics, Brent said:
TIG has created an atmosphere in which they’re your mates first and politicians second. They’re probably the sort of people you’d ask about cheap printer ink third. I told them I don’t know anything about politics, but they said that’s not a problem. I mean – I told them I could definitely do what they’re doing if I fancied it. They nodded and asked me to tell some more jokes. Now I’m here endorsing them.
Brent continued:
You’ll never get a party like TIG again. They’re basically like chilled-out PPI claims lawyers. When I first joined TIG, people asked if I want to be a well-respected politician or a clown. My answer’s this – they’re not mutually exclusive. Just look at the media’s coverage of Ian Austin. Funny guy. He played the bear on Bo’ Selecta!
Humour
Brent seems like a big catch for TIG, as he recently starred in his own docu-movie. Although many viewers watched David Brent: Life on the Road, few can remember what actually happened in it. Coincidentally, people are saying the same thing about every TIG interview.
Featured image via YouTube
