BRITISH PROFESSIONS TODAY: THE STATE OF ... - Property Week

Civil society
Given the decline in deference and shift in values over recent
years, those trusted professionals who can break through
citizens’ automatic scepticism or cynicism occupy a privileged
position in society. Scholars in the social capital tradition
consider trust to be a fundamental characteristic of effective
democracy (Putnam 1993). Though trust is in many ways an
intangible quality, people have clear and measurable opinions
about the trustworthiness of various occupations. If
democracy depends upon high levels of interpersonal trust, it
is perhaps worrying that trustworthiness is a quality citizens
find lacking in their legislators (Ipsos MORI 2007). The
comparative, albeit recently declining, trust endowed in
professionals suggests that society may welcome the
amplification of their advice and consultation to social and
political institutions. Professionals might build upon their
integral contributions to charitable, sporting and social clubs
– contributions which shore up civil society – to play a larger
political and social role, in collaboration with government, the
civil service, consumer groups, and the third sector.
Our research finds that professionals have an important role
in setting societal benchmarks, eg putting forth the initial test
cases which change legal precedents in common law. Although
influential people may come from a range of backgrounds, and
are not necessarily differentiated by age or gender or any
other demographic characteristics, what does differentiate
them, according to recent research, is: 1) being gregarious/
outgoing; 2) being part of a number of networks; and 3)
being well-read/having expertise (Duffy and Pierce 2007).
Professionals have expertise, a prerequisite to socio-political
influence, and (almost always) built-in networks of
professional colleagues and clients. Of course, not all
professionals will be, or want to be, socio-political influencers;
however, their status, knowledge, and networks make them
well placed to do so. In fact, they may even underestimate
their own influence. Additional research to quantify the
professions’ contributions to broader society and to measure
their collective leverage might further clarify the potential
scope of the professions’ future socio-political role.
4.2 Political consultation
Radical academic Ivan Illich once categorised professions
as cartels which dominate modern society (Ibid. 1977). His
modern-day disciples might include the likes of Prem Sikka,
who claims that, “the aim of the International Accounting
Standards Board (IASB) is nothing less than global domination
and to make the rest in the image of the West, fit for major
corporations” (The Guardian 29 August 2007). Turning to the
other extreme, government often underestimates professional
expertise and influence. The fact that the ONS and other
official sources do not collect statistics on the professions
as a group suggests that the state has not recognised the
significance of the professional sector.
The reality of the professions’ political influence surely
lies somewhere in between. Professional bodies are key
institutions for post-industrial states founded on liberal
principles, providing an effective method of regulating
certain spheres of economic life without developing an
oppressive central bureaucracy. Just as professions are
(partially) regulated by government, vice versa, professions
have a role to play in moderating government. The professions
provide another “check and balance” on government,
with its tendency to centralise power and to produce
increasing quantities of legislation and regulation in an ad hoc,
reactive fashion.
Professional bodies have key roles to play in the political
consultation process. They also provide an important
counterweight to centralised government administration
through their systems of self-regulation. Without them, a
sophisticated law-based liberal society and late-stage economy
could not function. As Frits Bolkestein, EU Internal Market
Commissioner, states: “Economies only work if companies are
run efficiently and transparently. We have seen vividly what
happens if they are not: investment and jobs will be lost – and,
in the worst cases, of which there are too many, shareholders,
employees, creditors and the public are ripped off ” (quoted in
Gosschalk and Hyde 2003).
British Professions Today: The State of the Sector © Spada Limited 2009 27