Should academics without business experience at a high level be banned from ministerial posts?
There are academics and academics. Some should definitely not be allowed anywhere near positions of power. These are those who tend to lack objectivity and push their own pet theories. I refer to people like those moneterist economists popular during the Thatcher era. Others are invaluable. Your question makes some sweeping assumptions. “Business experience at a high level” is not necessarily transferrable as we have seen in the case of the failed banks. Many of the top men had experience in marketing and the board thought they could run banks. The results speak for themselves. Some academics are fine researchers and while they may not have hands-on experience they are very good analytically and can help politicians understand the issues. But I would agree that many academics make poor politicians because many decisions are taken on the basis of politics and not on objective technical merits. That’s why many problems that could have been sorted have turned out to be such sorry messes.
