Last nights TV tribute to Winston Churchill was an interesting programme. Two messages stuck in my mind, both towards the end of the programme. The first was the human weaknesses that Jeremy Paxman spoke about but by contrast his comment that despite this, there had never been anyone with Churchills stature since. This is disturbing because as Jeremy pointed out we might need someone just as capable in the future. My own view on that whilst we may not need someone with the same skills and qualities, whatever we do need in the 21st Century what hope is there that they would make it through the current Political system, and how would they distinguish themselves from the Party system sufficiently to be trusted by the nation. The second comment was the honesty of the dock worker that many in the working classes did not like Churchill for his flamboyant lifestyle while they were living in deep poverty. This is an insight that has been overlooked in many of the reflections I have read and heard over many years. There are of course many reasons to dislike Churchills Politics, without detracting from him as a leader of a nation but his lack of empathy as felt by those who did go to School without shoes (something my own Father in Law experienced) does need to be better understood and heard more widely. This is especially important in a time of austerity by those that might seek to emulate him in certain ways. Let us hope that if we have need of someone with his capacity to galvanise our country, that they are capable of inspiring the poor and rich alike and that they unlike Churchill are willing to challenge the inequalities in our Nation!