What not to wear: A dress code for Westminster politicians

Sean O'Grady takes a look at what is and isn’t considered acceptable by our elected officials

Jacob Rees-Mogg’s look has proved no impediment to getting elected (Getty)

What do we want politicians to look like? What do they think they should look like?

The two are not always identical. Take Rawiri Waititi, member of the New Zealand parliament and who has received global attention for not wearing a tie in the chamber, and being kicked out as a result. Waititi was in fact wearing a different type of neckwear, a traditional Maori hei-tiki, a pendant, and he looked perfectly smart. The speaker in Wellington has now reversed the hasty judgement, but not before some outcry and Waititi describing the traditional western necktie as a “colonial noose”.

Parliaments, like other workplaces around the world, have to move with the times, and politicians find it more difficult than most to get the balance between being elegant and “in touch” exactly right. The anachronistic example of Jacob Rees-Mogg makes the point perfectly. The combination of lanky build, old-fashioned manners (in all senses), and a taste for pinstriped double-breasted suits teamed with pebble spectacles make him look like a character from an Ealing comedy. Some might say that the overall effect is neither elegant nor in-touch, but it has served him well and has proved no impediment to getting elected in Somerset.