Still Rising: The Career Politician in the British House of Commons, the
Cabinet and the Shadow Cabinet
professional politicians among its MPs.
Finally, after establishing the overall continuation of the career politician’s rise in the House of Commons since 1997, we should examine the
extent of his or her presence at the most senior levels of government and
opposition. Just as a candidate with professional experience directly related to politics had a disproportionate level of success in entering Parliament, Figure 3 clearly shows the further dominance of the professional
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