{"id":70091,"date":"2019-09-26T13:04:18","date_gmt":"2019-09-26T12:04:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/insight\/parliamentary-prose-the-language-of-leadership\/"},"modified":"2025-03-07T17:13:54","modified_gmt":"2025-03-07T17:13:54","slug":"parliamentary-prose-the-language-of-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/parliamentary-prose-the-language-of-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Parliamentary prose \u2013 the language of leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3><em>&#8220;In this, the most peculiar and extraordinary of political times, the language that is used is incredibly important.\u201d<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>Anna Soubry, leader of the Independent Group for Change<\/em>.<br \/>\nWe were surprised by the heightened language we heard in Parliament last night. And it\u2019s really divided the nation. Some think it\u2019s an acceptable symptom of passionate debate around crucial issues, some think it\u2019s bringing parliament into disrepute.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What was said?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you missed it, Labour\u2019s Paula Sherriff called for PM Boris Johnson to stop using words like \u2018surrender\u2019 to slander legislation MPs dislike. The PM replied that he thought her comments were \u2018humbug\u2019, which only inflamed the situation further.<br \/>\nWhat\u2019s wrong with \u2018surrender\u2019, anyway?<br \/>\nTwitter holds the answer. One user explained that it suggested the UK is at war with the EU, which carries serious implications.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The wrong words can\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The words we use are powerful \u2013 yet people in power don\u2019t always use them effectively. To persuade others we must choose words and language that bring people around (or at least closer) to our point of view, not words that alienate and disparage them.<br \/>\nIn fact, we think it\u2019s even more important to use the right words when the opposition doesn\u2019t agree with your view. If you need to write a complaint to a business, for example, you would take a logical approach and be polite yet persuasive. It\u2019s the best way to make your case and get the compensation you want. Send a rude letter and the business may refuse to look into the matter.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Language of the law makers<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Parliament has always been a place for heated debate. There was even a time when swords were commonly drawn. That\u2019s why there are two red lines on the carpet (they\u2019re more than two sword lengths apart so no duels could take place in the chamber itself).<br \/>\nMPs choose to do their fighting with words now, as they should. There are actually rules in place to promote politeness and civility in the chamber. Words like \u2018coward\u2019, \u2018git\u2019, \u2018rat\u2019, \u2018stoolpigeon\u2019 and \u2018traitor\u2019 are all on the no-go list. But an outright ban may not be very effective. Perhaps it should be more about observing the spirit of the rules. We think it would be more compelling for a leader to choose the language of persuasion and respect, knowing that the right words can make positive change rather than stoke division and do harm.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The right words<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>So what words do we want to hear our politicians using? The answer isn\u2019t to be positive all the time. In fact, if MPs use overly inspirational language, it can suggest they\u2019re looking at matters through rose-tinted glasses and not understanding the whole picture.<br \/>\nEvery leader will have their own style, but we think anyone in a position of power should make sure their language is always considered, clear and civil. Because the world needs leaders that can see beyond their own position and consider all points of view. Being able to hold and share individual views is a cornerstone of democracy, after all.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>More from Anna<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/team-member\/anna\/\">Anna<\/a> is one of our talented in house writers, working alongside our specialist network of writers. Meet more of our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/about-us\/\">team here.<\/a><\/p>\n<h2><strong>About us<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>As a copywriting company, we know how to give your content writing an engaging boost. Speak to us about our range of copywriting services. Whether you\u2019re a global brand or a start-up, we can help.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;In this, the most peculiar and extraordinary of political times, the language that is used is incredibly important.\u201d Anna Soubry, leader of the Independent Group for Change. We were surprised by the heightened language we heard in Parliament last night. And it\u2019s really divided the nation. Some think it\u2019s an acceptable symptom of passionate debate [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":57164,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[453],"tags":[489,509],"class_list":["post-70091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archived-content-us","tag-english-language-us","tag-impact-of-language-us"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Parliamentary prose \u2013 the language of leadership - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting &amp; Content Marketing Agency<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When does the language of leadership cross the line, and stop moving us towards a shared vision for our collective future, and instead do damage?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.strattoncraig.com\/us\/insight\/parliamentary-prose-the-language-of-leadership\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Parliamentary prose \u2013 the language of leadership - Stratton Craig - Global Copywriting &amp; 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