Alum Dr Nik Johnson reflects on his route into politics and his time at St George's
Published: 08 March 2022
On 6 May 2021, St George’s Class of 1993 alumnus, Dr Nik Johnson, was elected as Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough – a huge victory for the Labour and Cooperative Party in a Mayoral Combined Authority formerly held by the Conservatives. He spoke to us to share his reflections on his time at St George’s, and how he balances his two roles as Consultant Paediatrician and Mayor.
Dr Johnson had an interest in politics from a young age and says:
“As a teenager growing up in the 1980s, I was aware of the huge societal changes sweeping through the UK (particularly in the industrial areas of my home area of the North East England) and how that was influenced by the political choices of those a long way away from my day-to-day life. My Dad used to read Private Eye, which I’d borrow from him, and I was always listening to The Today Programme and this all helped shape my political understanding and beliefs.”
He adds, “I have always been a democratic socialist at heart. Perhaps it was no surprise that I found myself on at a picket line during my time as a student outside St George’s hospital in support of nursing colleagues. I recall demonstrating against John Major in 1992 on a visit to Tooting Leisure Centre, before I found myself standing as the Labour Party candidate in his former constituency (Huntingdon) many years later!”
Reflecting on his time at St George’s, Dr Johnson says, “I’m originally from rural Northumberland, so it was a bit of a transition moving from home to London to study Medicine, but I loved being in a big city and have always enjoyed meeting new people.
“I was very young when I first joined the university, as I had only just turned 18. After the challenges of several ‘resit summers’, I realised I wasn’t quite ready to be a doctor yet. I was grateful to have supporting tutors who were understanding of this, allowing me to delay my studies by a year. I spent some time travelling around Africa and returned the following year, feeling keen to get involved in university life.
“As a student, I wanted to get to know everyone in my cohort and speak to as many people as possible, so I spent a lot of time in the Students’ Union bar! In what was my first foray into standing for elected office, I was lucky to be become a First Year Rep and was later promoted to the heady heights of Entertainment (ENTS) officer which kept me almost permanently in the bar. I am still in touch with quite a few of my classmates today, making it to reunions with the group when I can.”
“I particularly loved living in southwest London and the diversity of the area, so much so that I stayed on to work there for another two years after I graduated - I even ran to be the Labour candidate for MP for Tooting. Although I wasn’t successful, it was great to see another doctor, Rosena Allin-Khan, in the position and I was proud she was willing to support the launch of my own mayoral campaign here in Cambridgeshire.”
Sharing how his relationship with politics has evolved over time, Dr Johnson says, “I first started campaigning for Labour alongside my role as a junior doctor not long after qualifying. I’m passionate about providing the best possible care to the most vulnerable and it felt like an exciting time for the NHS when Blair’s government came into power in 1997. After that, I continued supporting the party, but juggling a busy role with having a young family meant that I was less directly involved for a while.”
When Dr Johnson and his family moved out of London in 2010, he took the opportunity to re-engage in politics and got involved in his local Huntingdon parliamentary constituency soon after. In 2018, he was elected as district councillor for St Neots East – the first Labour councillor in the town for two decades – and sat on Huntingdonshire District council’s planning committee.
Reflecting on his reaction to being made Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough last year, Dr Johnson says,
"It felt an honour to have been chosen. I campaigned on a message of ‘The Three Cs’ – Compassion, cooperation and community.” It is wonderful to have the opportunity to make meaningful change to improve public services in an area where there are real challenges of intra- regional inequality, with significant rural poverty and social isolation.”
Dr Johnson continues to work as a Consultant Paediatrician at Hinchingbrooke Hospital alongside his role as Mayor and says: “I always knew that I wanted to become a doctor, and I’m still a doctor first and foremost – I would be lost without the reality check. It’s a role that enables you to be at the heart of the community and meet, help and support people from all walks of life.
“Something that is wonderful about my role as a Paediatrician is the ability to build relationships with, and shape the lives of, local families. I thrive on being a generalist, and Paediatrics is an area of Medicine in which there is a huge expectation to collaborate with local organisations. Developing those close bonds within the local area is something that prepared and helped me in my role as Mayor, as it has enabled me to open up more conversations with members of the community.
Speaking about how his time at St George’s has influenced his role as a Paediatrician, Dr Johnson says: “We were encouraged to be reflective in our practice. Taking time to look back on, and learn, from different experiences. It has helped me continue to grow as a doctor and it is an approach that I’ve also taken as Mayor, helping me to adapt to the challenges of this new role.
“Training as a doctor, you develop a strong sense of empathy and whatever I achieve within my time as Mayor, I want people to remember me as someone who acted first and foremost with compassion, in everything he did.”