"Hoi polloi" is derogatory. That's the sense in which Nigel used it and it's why it's not my choice of words for the people of this country. "Forty million unelected individuals whose credentials are entirely unchecked and which in most cases wouldn't bear close examination (next time you're down the pub, ask a random handful of people what a customs union is)" is what I said. Some of those forty million will be expert plasterers, builders, plumbers, bus drivers, electricians, orthopaedic surgeons and university lecturers. We pay them to be accomplished in those fields. We pay MPs to make vital choices for the country from a position of knowledge and intimate understanding of domestic and international issues. I don't want to ask an MP to do my sink replacement and I don't want to ask my plumber to decide the fate of my children and grandchildren.