Do Politicians Understand Life Outside of Privilege?

For many in power, poverty is just a statistic, not a lived experience.

 It would be far-fetched to believe that most politicians have ever woken up and truly felt the weight of struggle; choosing between heating and eating, skipping meals so their kids can eat, or working multiple jobs just to barely scrape by.

Have they ever faced a genuine lack of opportunity, where no doors magically opened, no connections smoothed the way, and no safety net caught them when they fell? For many people across the UK, struggle is not a phase. It’s a cycle, reinforced by policies made by those who have never had to fight for survival in the same way.

Yet, these same politicians dictate policies on welfare, wages, housing, and healthcare - the very systems meant to support those facing real hardship. How can they claim to understand what’s best for struggling communities when their own lives have been cushioned at every necessary turn?

Does real representation exist in government, or are we governed by a class of people whose privilege blinds them to the daily realities of the working class? And if politicians were forced to live on minimum wage for a year, how many of them would make it?

This conversation isn’t just about calling out privilege, but about demanding better representation - leaders who have lived real struggles, understand real hardship, and can truly fight for those who need it most.

Have your say on this topic in the comments. #RealPeopleRealVoices #BeyondTheSurface

Marie-Louise. x