The Peter McCormack Show

Episode: PMQs #009 – Jenrick's Defection Changes Nothing
Date: January 19, 2026
Host: Peter McCormack
Guest: Connor

Episode Overview

This episode centers on the high-profile defection of Robert Jenrick from the Conservative Party to Reform, examining what—if anything—such moves actually change in the landscape of British politics. Peter and Connor use the event as a springboard for a wide-ranging, unscripted conversation about political disillusionment, the state of the UK economy, personal agency in the political system, and the deeper psychological and societal forces at play behind voting, career ambition, and the desire for "change." They reinforce the notion that the recurring circulation of establishment figures through different parties amounts to surface-level shifts with little real consequence, especially in face of entrenched interests and systemic economic decay.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Jenrick’s Defection: Cosmetic Change or True Shift?

• Jenrick opens (00:00) with a bleak diagnosis of Britain’s economic decline, listing flat or falling wages, eroding industrial base, rising costs, and diminishing opportunities for young people.
• The hosts immediately question the authenticity and impact of his move:
  • Peter (01:14): “How do I stay in politics? Well, if I join Reform, I’m instantly going to be a minister when they… win.”
  • Connor (02:40): “It’s slimy. Well, slimy, snakey. Everything’s backhanders… There’s no truth and honor.”
• The consensus is that Jenrick’s shift is more self-serving than principled, emblematic of a broader pattern where establishment players switch jerseys but not the game.

2. Economic Decline and Political Promises

• The episode repeatedly returns to Britain's economic malaise:
  • Jenrick’s speech:
    “From 1970 to 2007, real wages went down by 1/3 every 10 years… Today, 18 to 30 year olds are the first Britons to earn less than their parents.” (00:10, 03:52)
  • Peter (04:51): Praises Jenrick's focus on economics but quickly highlights skepticism: “It’s the only bit I like… Although I’d want to fact check that… not sure if that’s true.”
• The hosts are cynical about all current reformist narratives, emphasizing hollow promises and lack of substantial accountability.

3. Are We Part of the Problem?

• Peter expresses concern about complicity in the political spectacle:
  • Peter (07:04): “Are we part of the problem?... If we came out and said… I might even vote for Reform… are we just part of the problem? Are we getting sucked in to just supporting the establishment?”
• The show’s role as media and “narrative factory” becomes a meta-topic.

4. “Decaying Choices” and The Pace of Decline

• Peter (11:06): “I don’t think with Reform you are voting for anything but decay. I think the only thing you’re voting for is the pace of decay and who they point the decay at.”
• The implication is voters aren’t really getting change, just marginally different versions of decline.

5. Voter Apathy, Boycotting the System, and the "White Pill"

• Both hosts grapple with the sense of futility in participation:
  • Peter (12:51): “I’m not getting sucked in. I haven’t voted in the last three elections. I’m not voting this election.”
  • Argues for demanding clear, specific, and enforceable policies—otherwise, withholds participation.
• Connor and Peter debate the practicalities and philosophical justifications for "flipping the board" (opting out), referencing both personal privilege and the impossibility for many working-class people to do the same.

6. The Real Powers: 150 Men & Systemic Puppetry

• A clip from Chamath Palihapitiya (28:02) posits that roughly 150 men truly control the world behind the curtain, reducing politics to theater:
  • “Anybody who wants to go into politics, they’re all fucking puppets…”
• This perspective reinforces a strong sense of fatalism and black-pilled futility regarding meaningful change via elections.

7. Society’s Manufactured Desires & Personal Fulfillment

• The conversation becomes existential, exploring what actual happiness and fulfillment mean if politics and consumerism are a rigged game.
• Peter (48:09): “Maybe the white pill is going, what do I actually need in life? What do I actually… not what does my ego need? Or what perception do I want the world to have?”
• They reference Rene Girard’s “mimetic desire” and the story of the penguin from Werner Herzog (“march of the penguins”) as metaphors for courageously opting out.

8. Cycles of Resentment and Selfishness

• The hosts question if modern society forces everyone to become more selfish, and whether thin or empty desires—status, recognition—are what ultimately keep political and economic systems running.

9. Accountability and Radical Alternatives

• Repeatedly, Peter asks what mechanisms would actually enforce governmental promises:
  • “If you’ve materially not delivered… if you borrow one penny more than you said… new election, referendum, I don’t care.” (17:45)
• Fantasizes about decentralized, locally focused political models as a way to "flip the board" and restore agentic power.

Memorable Quotes & Key Timestamps

• Robert Jenrick (00:10):
  “From 1970 to 2007, real wages went down by 1/3 every 10 years. Since then, they flatlined… Today, 18 to 30 year olds are the first Britons to earn less than their parents.”

• Peter McCormack (06:08):
  “They're part of the problem. They are the establishment. And I just think, Con, the whole thing's got to go.”

• Connor (08:09):
  “But I don't think we are part of the problem because the first thing we're saying is we're not buying it.”

• Peter McCormack (11:06):
  “I don’t think with Reform you are voting for anything but decay. I think the only thing you’re voting for is the pace of decay and who they point the decay at.”

• Chamath Palihapitiya (clip) (28:02):
  “There’s about 150 people that run the world. Anybody who wants to go into politics, they’re all fucking puppets, okay?... It is unfairly set up for them and their progeny.”

• Peter McCormack (31:58):
  “Just flip the board and stop playing. And so maybe the white pill is... I’m just not gonna play, I’m not gonna play this fucking game anymore.”

• Connor (48:09):
  “Once your eyes are opened, you’ve taken the red pill. Very hard to get past that with… just the daily going about your life… when I get strung up on that 150 people, it’s like, what's the point?”

• Peter McCormack (53:03):
  “Maybe the White Pillar is just not caring anymore... Maybe it's just, I don't care anymore.”

Topical Timestamps

• 00:00 – 01:10: Jenrick’s “decline” speech
• 01:14 – 02:54: Motives behind political defection
• 03:38 – 04:51: Analyzing economic decline claims
• 07:04 – 08:09: Media complicity and manipulation
• 11:06 – 13:38: Voter apathy, “pace of decay”
• 15:11 – 18:27: Demands for political accountability
• 28:02 – 29:18: Chamath clip (real power behind the curtain)
• 31:12 – 33:27: “Monopoly Socialism” and “flipping the board”
• 48:09 – 50:03: Personal happiness, existential outlook
• 53:03 – 54:33: Not caring, “the white pill” and detachment

Notable Moments

• Rene Girard’s “mimetic desire” and the Werner Herzog penguin story drawn as metaphors for existential agency (51:32 – 53:03)
• “Monopoly Socialism” anecdote: Used to express the futility of certain systemic games (31:11 – 31:57)
• Real talk about local versus national political power (45:41 – 47:05)
• Peter’s blunt apathy: “I haven’t voted in the last three elections. I’m not voting this election.” (12:51)

Tone and Style

The conversation is passionate, wry, and sometimes exasperated. Peter and Connor oscillate between nihilistic black-pilling, sardonic humor, and moments of introspective clarity (“the white pill”). The tone is direct, frequently swearing, and unvarnished, purposely avoiding political platitudes or easy certainty.

Final Thoughts

Peter and Connor ultimately express deep skepticism of the current political game—seeing apparent changes like Jenrick's defection as mostly cosmetic—and point toward the need for either radical accountability or personal disengagement ("flipping the board”). The episode challenges listeners to recognize the fundamental shallowness of systemic change driven by establishment actors, advocating either for a principled boycott of the system, or creating new, locally-empowered models of agency and fulfillment.

Summary by The Peter McCormack Show Podcast Summarizer