The Silent State
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Review
'Will strike fear into the hearts of politicians, assuming they have hearts. You won't know whether to laugh or rise up and overthrow absolutely everything.' --Charlie Brooker
'A wonderful book ... Heather Brooke puts every other British journalist to shame. She single-handedly exposed the systemic corruption that had become an embedded part of parliament at the turn of the 20th century. In doing so she has changed British public culture and earned an essential place in our national history. She is an extraordinary figure who must be celebrated.' --Peter Oborne
'Secrecy is one of the great British diseases. It's so secret that we don't even admit we suffer from it. Heather Brooke is part of the cure - challenging the routine concealment and distortion of important information. There should be more journalists doing the same.' --Nick Davies, author of FLAT EARTH NEWS
`A hero of our troubled political times' --Sunday Times
`Passionate, eloquent and persuasive' --The Times, Book of the Week
`***** If you care about our so-called democracy, you must read this profoundly shocking book' --Mail on Sunday
`She's a total ninja' --Ben Goldacre, author of Bad Science
'A wonderful book ... Heather Brooke puts every other British journalist to shame. She single-handedly exposed the systemic corruption that had become an embedded part of parliament at the turn of the 20th century. In doing so she has changed British public culture and earned an essential place in our national history. She is an extraordinary figure who must be celebrated.' --Peter Oborne
'Secrecy is one of the great British diseases. It's so secret that we don't even admit we suffer from it. Heather Brooke is part of the cure - challenging the routine concealment and distortion of important information. There should be more journalists doing the same.' --Nick Davies, author of FLAT EARTH NEWS
`A hero of our troubled political times' --Sunday Times
`Passionate, eloquent and persuasive' --The Times, Book of the Week
`***** If you care about our so-called democracy, you must read this profoundly shocking book' --Mail on Sunday
`She's a total ninja' --Ben Goldacre, author of Bad Science
Book Description
A modern classic of journalism and an iconic investigation of power in C21st Britain, by one of the country's leading reporters.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
92 of 97 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought this book having heard of Heather Brooke through her instrumental role in breaking the MPs expenses scandal and I'm so very glad I did.
Heather lifts the lid on the rotten heart of British democracy and exposes just how little real information the electorate actually have to work with when judging the performance of their elected officials, police services and judiciary.
We pay for huge amounts of data to be gathered on our behalf and about us, and yet we are (in many cases explicitly) denied access to that data. Sometimes we get to pay for it many times over before being presented with a figure-fiddled, dumbed-down press release that bears little or no resemblance to the facts.
In many ways a lot of UK voters already suspect many of the issues raised in this book, but to see the hard facts is something of a smack-in-the-face. If you are suffering from voter apathy, this is one book that is guaranteed to stir you out of it.
Heather has a wonderfully fluid and accessible writing style that carries you through what could easily have been a dry subject with ease and humour. Her ability, and persistance, to get at the truth places her at the pinnacle of modern investigative journalism and, for me, the name Heather Brooke belongs amongst those of game-changes like Bob Woodward,Carl Bernstein and Amira Hass.
Heather lifts the lid on the rotten heart of British democracy and exposes just how little real information the electorate actually have to work with when judging the performance of their elected officials, police services and judiciary.
We pay for huge amounts of data to be gathered on our behalf and about us, and yet we are (in many cases explicitly) denied access to that data. Sometimes we get to pay for it many times over before being presented with a figure-fiddled, dumbed-down press release that bears little or no resemblance to the facts.
In many ways a lot of UK voters already suspect many of the issues raised in this book, but to see the hard facts is something of a smack-in-the-face. If you are suffering from voter apathy, this is one book that is guaranteed to stir you out of it.
Heather has a wonderfully fluid and accessible writing style that carries you through what could easily have been a dry subject with ease and humour. Her ability, and persistance, to get at the truth places her at the pinnacle of modern investigative journalism and, for me, the name Heather Brooke belongs amongst those of game-changes like Bob Woodward,Carl Bernstein and Amira Hass.
41 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have spent 30 odd years of teaching History, and attempting to answer questions from students such as "How could they do that", "How did they get away with that", "Why did people believe them" about various historical events of the last 2000 years. Any ideas I might have had that we now live in more democratic and enlightened times are blown away by this book. Some of the stories are not new, but collected together they are a dismal and depressing chronicle of present-day Britain. In many ways we have as little freedom as medieval peasants.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I used to work in the public sector so I have seen the other side. The book makes lots of good comments and is well worth reading. The general principles I agree with but implementation needs to be economic and practical. For example the recent government announcement that local authjorities will have to publish details of all items over £500 (all in line with the book) seems way over the top as a starting point and likely to increase costs. Why not start at - say £5000 - and then extend it from there?
The author - rightly - draws attention to the (existing) rights of public access to local authorities' financial transactions but makes no mention of the abuses that occur and public money wasted as a result of some 'questions and objections' from members of the public - all of which have to be responded to. It would have been useful if the author had pointed out that this (existing) provision applies only to local authorities - ?as will the new £500 requirement - what about the rest of the public sector - especially central government and quangos.
However these are relatively small gripes - still strongly recommended.
The author - rightly - draws attention to the (existing) rights of public access to local authorities' financial transactions but makes no mention of the abuses that occur and public money wasted as a result of some 'questions and objections' from members of the public - all of which have to be responded to. It would have been useful if the author had pointed out that this (existing) provision applies only to local authorities - ?as will the new £500 requirement - what about the rest of the public sector - especially central government and quangos.
However these are relatively small gripes - still strongly recommended.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great Book
Great book. Not for bed time reading because it will leave you quite angry. Heather Brooke actually exposed the MP expenses scandal before The Daily Telegraph got hold of it. Read more
Published 24 days ago by Physioman
good start - where's the rest of it?
THE SILENT STATE
It's like reading a big book where most of the juicy bits have been censored. Many of the people who read this book, will follow this sleazy stuff in the... Read more
It's like reading a big book where most of the juicy bits have been censored. Many of the people who read this book, will follow this sleazy stuff in the... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Mr. J. Hudson
Eye Opener
Eye-opening. This book covers so much of what is wrong with British politics, but also includes a powerful story illustrating that 1 person can actually have the power to make... Read more
Published 9 months ago by C. Houston
The Silent State
The Silent State
A brilliant book and really makes you think about how much freedom we really have to question are political masters, the police, local government and... Read more
A brilliant book and really makes you think about how much freedom we really have to question are political masters, the police, local government and... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Dave Russell
Tabloid polemic, possibly true, but unsupported by evidence....
Heather Brooks has established her reputation by exposing the MP's expenses scandal, and she makes serious and worrying criticisms of the way we are governed, and the way... Read more
Published 11 months ago by sceptic
One of the best books I have ever read.
If every third person in the country read this book there would be no Government. Yes, this book could bring down the Government if enough people read it. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Picadilly Commando
Entertaining and informative
If you'd like to know how messed up our Government system is and how our elected officials actively barr us from information that we pay for and to top it all waste millions of our... Read more
Published 12 months ago by N. Butt
stickman
Gave up half way. I am sure we all know not to trust governments. It would have been more readable if it had been written as a novel.
Published 12 months ago by Stickman
Right wing rant about the state
I bought this book expecting to read an exciting tale about uncovering state secrets and a reasoned argument for a more open society. Read more
Published 13 months ago by rob
Is there any hope?
This is a very accessible read. Full of stories that are familiar, with outcomes that are irrefutible. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Oldraver
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