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Countries have a psychological need for leadership and without it there is an uneasy, inchoate political discontent.

Good grief, she really is quite the little nationalist, isn’t she? Damn near the Fuhrerprinzip, the leader as the expression of the national will. It simply never crosses her mind that democracy and politics is all about our finding someone who’ll keep the streets clean, the criminals in the prisons and then bugger off and let us get on with our lives.

Democracy needs good, ordinary people to join political parties, decent
citizens willing to tramp the pavements, knock on doors and rouse the
inertia of the populace.

Well, no actually, it doesn’t. I agree that the above is essential for party politics, but that’s not actually the same thing as democracy.

After years in control, Labour lost Slough council last time. Power
passed to a curious coalition of 12 independent "others", six
Conservatives and five Lib Dems.

Tsk, how dare they go and disprove Polly’s point? 12 independents, those not members of political parties, get elected in a democratic election. Absolute proof that party politics and democracy are not in fact the same thing.