While the posturing, self interest and “let’s wait for the official enquiry” attitude of our MPs on the expenses take continues, as they elect a Speaker, the experiences of the young entrepreneurs of Pembrokeshire tell a very different story.

I met a couple of them today and the help they are getting is worse than useless. The reason it is “worse” is that they are spending money to attend meetings – no shortage of these with salaried officials – only to be refused the grant they need.

They sought a loan from their bank - £25,000 – to buy what they needed for a business that was already beginning to attract work. The answer: “We need security. You will have to add to the mortgages on your homes before we could help.”

These are young people, science graduates, one of them a fluent Welsh speaker and they have been working on what is a starvation wage for a year to succeed.

They are still working, going it alone, and they have the ability and drive to succeed. One of them decided to apply for jobs for which he was well qualified with an upper second, science honours degree. The intention was that if he could work then the money would keep them afloat, and he could still work in the business in the evenings, while they developed their small firm.

While he was offered interviews, he was never offered a job. His conclusion, whether fact or the result of an understandable cynicism, is that he is there to “make up the numbers.” They always say, “We will let you know. They have already decided."

This is reality and far from the robes, posturing and inordinate privileges of Parliament. The pantomime in the Commons, while they elect a Speaker already offering to return money he claimed on expenses, has as much relevance to these young men as life in another galaxy.

Young people hearing that the Speaker is being “dragged unwillingly to his chair” and being told that the Queen “has the greatest confidence in him” are more deeply confirmed than ever in their view that nothing is changing, just more promises and words.

The anger of the ordinary people, the workers, the unemployed is neither understood nor is there a response. While my two friends cannot find £25,000 the hospitality boxes at Wimbledon (courtesy of the bankrupt RBS and its handsomely rewarded ex boss Fred Goodwin) are full.

Their views, their contempt for what is being done, their indifference to Parliament and the Welsh Assembly becomes more deeply ingrained by the day.

The performance in Parliament is just that: performance. Just like show biz. The detachment from real life remains and the promises of examinations of expenses, police investigations into downright fraud are still no more than that. Until we see some of these MP freeloaders actually before a court, sentenced and serving time in prison the people on the edge are not going to be convinced.

In the meantime the plan for the MPs seems to be to avoid fundamental change and lay on lots of cosmetic spin. It worked before, so they think it will work again. And time is a wonderful means of cooling anger.