A MAN on a mission to visit every parliament he can has declared Jersey’s States Assembly the best he has experienced so far… after touring 32 legislatures across Europe and beyond in around just 18 months.
UK-based university learning technology technologist and TV quizzer Nicholas Elliott has turned an unlikely passion into an international pursuit, travelling to more than 50 countries and contacting parliaments one by one in the hope they will open their doors to him.
Jersey became his 32nd parliament last month – and, he says, left the biggest impression to date.
“I’m going to say this: they’re the best, the best I’ve ever been to,” he said in a Bailiwick Podcasts interview.
Mr Elliott’s fascination with parliaments began around just two years ago, following what he initially assumed would be a fairly mundane tour of Westminster with his visiting Polish mother-in-law and daughter.
“I thought to myself, ‘This is not going to be very interesting’,” he admitted, but explained that it was not long before he found himself captivated by the history and traditions of the Palace of Westminster.
“I started learning things about a country which I’ve lived in all my life… I was so amazed by the rich history the UK has. That’s how it basically started. I got the bug from that moment onwards.”
Since then, Mr Elliott has written to legislatures across Europe and further afield asking whether they would host him, comparing himself to a “mystery shopper” for democracy.
“I’m just a normal person. I’m not a politician, I’m not an academic, I’m not a journalist,” he said, “But when I arrive, sometimes [parliamentary staff] think I’m a celebrity… They’re always asking, ‘Why do you want to visit our parliament?'”
The answer, he says, is all about truly knowing how the people and institutions that shape citizens’ way of life operate, and being better able to hold them to account.
Comparing elected politicians to tenants looking after a rented property on behalf of voters, Mr Elliott explained: “People vote for politicians and then go, ‘My work here is done. Carry on for five years.’
“I think, wouldn’t you want to meet the person? Wouldn’t you want to know what they’re doing? When the ‘contract’ comes to an end, I want to decide whether I want to keep you as my tenant or whether I want somebody better.”
He believes ordinary people should take a greater interest in how their legislatures operate and says some of his visits have even prompted parliaments to rethink how accessible they are.
“Some of them have actually set up tours afterwards. They’ve listened to my advice and made them available for schoolchildren or the general public. That’s transparency. Civic engagement is what I’m all about.”
Not every parliament has been so welcoming, however.
“There are countries which are, bluntly, not democratic,” he said. “Those are the countries who basically say, ‘No one can visit our parliament’ – even people who live there.”
As for Jersey, Mr Elliott said the visit also transformed his understanding and appreciation of the Island.
Like many people in Britain, he had assumed Jersey was simply part of the UK before discovering its unique constitutional relationship with the Crown, its own parliament, immigration rules and legal system – a revelation he likened to discovering that “a dolphin isn’t actually a fish”.
He said he particularly enjoyed learning about William the Conqueror’s connection, King John’s loss of Normandy, the German Occupation and the role of the Bailiff during the Second World War.
Inside the States Building, he was fascinated by the architecture, how the courtroom directly adjoins the Assembly chamber, and the Bailiff’s ceremonial mace.
Mr Elliott – who has been a contestant on numerous gameshows – also praised the member of the States Greffe who guided his visit, saying she answered every question he could throw at her.
“I was trying to catch her out because I know my stuff,” he laughed. “Every question I asked, she knew the answer.”
But more so, he was impressed by how “direct” Jersey’s political system felt.
While Islanders may have their own gripes with representation, Mr Elliott said the proximity to local decision-makers was an asset he felt more people should appreciate, particularly given how challenging it can be to contact and exchange views with MPs in the UK.
As a result, Mr Elliott said Jersey should be on every politics student’s itinerary.
“If you really want to see another [country’s parliament], go to Jersey,” he said. “You have a beautiful history that goes back more than 1,000 years, and you can see how a small Assembly can actually work. It shows you what pure democracy looks like.”
His parliamentary world tour continued this month with Jamaica, where, he joked, he would have to swap shorts for a jacket despite the warm weather because of the chamber’s strict dress code.
Ahead of that trip, however, he said that Jersey was proudly at the top of his parliamentary league table, even joking that, if someone could “put in a good word” to help him move to the Island, he might one day stand for election himself.
