Facing the electors

The lack of respect many people have for MPs appears to have deep roots, according to a new book on the relationship between politicians and voters by the Cambridge historian Dr Jon Lawrence.

In Electing Our Masters: The Hustings in British Politics from Hogarth to Blair, Dr Lawrence describes how from the 18th Century onwards, politicians often had to risk humiliation and even physical harm when they came face to face with the public.

Election meetings 200 years ago were often rowdy but rather than avoid them politicians felt obliged to take part.

In the first of a two part, interview Dr Lawrence told me these events certainly weren't for the fainthearted.

In part two Dr Lawrence explains how broadcasting - especially television - has affected the relationship between voters and politicians since the 1950s.