In a rousing attempt to capture the spirit of the former prime minister, Boris Johnson delivered the keynote speech at the annual Margaret Thatcher lecture last night. In it, he sought to justify his belief that inequality could be desirable “for the spirit of envy and keeping up with the Joneses” by claiming that inequality is inevitable. Why? Because of differences in our IQ.
Whatever you may think of the value of IQ tests it is surely relevant to a conversation about equality that as many as 16% of our species have an IQ below 85 … Over 16% anyone? Put up your hands.
Muted laughter followed. He then turned his attention to the 2% of the population who have an IQ above 130. We check those numbers.